Pretty Cure Shuffle!
by MrAntonio
Summary: The Gambling King and the Card Shark Quartet have invaded the Land of Cards with monsters created by souls of not only the denizens of the Land, but others that they have collected as they've moved from land to land. Cure Poker is forced into the human world and has no memory of her past! Kichi, Audrey and Madoka join forces with Poker to save the Land of Cards before it's too late
1. The Land of Cards in Danger!

It had all happened so quickly. One moment, Cure Poker was standing in the meadow, admiring the gorgeous flowers of the Queen's Garden. The next, the sky had turned a horrible shade of grey, and blue fire was destroying everything. The White Warrior acted quickly. The Gambling King and his minions were here. She knew this day was coming, but she was still surprised, now that it was actually happening. The Gambling King had issued a warning to the Queen of Cards: Surrender the kingdom or suffer the consequences. Naturally, the Queen refused. What surprised Cure Poker, however, was that it took the King this long to attack. He had issued the warning over two years ago. Cure Poker had just received her powers of being a Pretty Cure warrior. The warriors before her had been retired. Cure Poker didn't know them, but it was the first time that a citizen of the Land of Cards had been selected to become a Pretty Cure Warrior.

It should have been Poker's time to shine. However, the monsters kept spewing their fire, and continued to storm the small towns in the kingdom. In a flash of white and pale pink, Cure Poker raced her way to the Battle Tower of the Queen's castle. She found the Lieutenant of the Card Army there, but the Queen was gone.  
"Where is she?! Where's the Queen?!" Poker ordered.  
"She's already made her way to the front line!" Poker's eyes widened; her stomach dropped.  
The very person that was at the highest on her list of people to protect was fighting? She bust through the door and raced down the staircase, cursing under her breath. She had to make it to the front line of the battle. It was bad enough that she hadn't been prepared for the Gambling King's army, but she would never forgive herself if something happened to the Queen.

She made her way through the court yard. There wasn't a lot going on, as the monsters and the King's minions were still a ways away from the castle. But she had to act quickly.  
THWUMP!  
Cure Poker felt something hit her back. Whatever it was had hit her with a force that caused her to fly into the wall of the main gates to the castle. Dazed, she slid down to her knees, her cheek being scratched as gravity worked on her. The White Warrior used all her now fading strength to turn around and face what ever it was that had attacked her. Her vision blurred, and all she could make out was the figure of a tall young man, his hair an electric blue color. He was advancing on her, but she had no way to fight. Her strength was gone. Cure Poker readied herself to be taken by this monster and enslaved.  
Just before the young man could reach her, something else had drawn his attention. Maybe it was someone attacking him. Maybe it was the Gambling King needing him for something else. Cure Poker couldn't tell. What ever it was that the young man had hit her with, it had left her powerless and defenseless. Cure Poker let her eyes close, and the sounds of battle faded away.

The morning began like any other. Student's piled into Yugaki Middle School's courtyard at 7:15 AM sharp. They still had about fifteen or so minutes before class started, but took their time getting to class once they made it through the front gate. The students were starting their third week of school back from the summer break. But for others, they had been working all summer long for the fall activities. Audrey made her way through the halls of the second floor of the school, her thick, navy hair piled on the top of her head, twisted into a loose bun that bobbed as she walked. She said her good mornings to some of her friends outside of her group of best friends. After another minute or so of walking, she finally made it to the theatre room.  
"...but I cannot choose but weep to think they would lay him i' th' cold ground.  
My brother shall know of it; and so I thank you for your good  
counsel. Come, my coach! Good night, ladies. Good night, sweet  
ladies. Good night, good night!"  
A natural smile spread across Audrey's face as she slid the door open to the theatre room, right as Kichi strolled out of the room. Kichi liked to keep her exits simple, but effective.  
"Oh! Audrey! You're here! Did you hear that just now? How was it? Did you like it? Do I need to add anything?" Kichi asked excitedly.  
"Perfect as always, Kichi!" Kichi ran back into the room, said her goodbyes to the rest of the theatre club, and ran back out to Audrey.

The two were lucky to be in the same class again. After having known each other since they were in diapers, it was hard to imagine the two girls without one another. Kichi rambled on to Audrey about some parts of the summer that Audrey wasn't present for. The two girls made their way down to their classroom, not really paying attention to much around them. The two girls weren't exactly popular, but they were well liked by anyone that they met.  
They made it to the classroom just in time for the bell. Kichi power walked to her seat behind her other friend Madoka as the bell rang.  
"How perfect is it to sit behind you, Madoka? You're so tall, I can get away with not reading!" Kichi joked.  
Madoka gave a small giggle, but said nothing, the teacher walking in.  
"Stand!"  
The students when through their morning routine before the lesson officially started, though Yukata-sensei amended the situation by adding one piece of information.

"Before we begin class, I'd like to introduce to you our new transfer student. Come in!"  
Yukata-sensei gestured, and the door slid open. A normal looking girl of fifteen stepped quietly through the door, her dark tresses lay straight, and flat. The only spectacle about the girl was a glittering, white diamond hairpiece that held her bangs back.  
"This is-"  
"Oshiro Yui."  
The girl, now named Yui, cut off the teacher.  
"Hehe! She's more bold than you are, Madoka!" Kichi whispered.  
"Hush, Kichi. Listen to the girl's self introduction."  
But Oshiro Yui made no self introduction. Kichi kept her eyes on the girl, it didn't seem like it was because she simply didn't want to. No, it seemed like she couldn't. Kichi kept her eyes on the girl's face, noticing how expressionless it was. No, it wasn't completely expressionless. Kichi had trained herself to read people's faces, being a theatre junkie. The girl had an air of confusion, a look of being lost on her face.

*********************  
Sharp, a young looking boy stood in the middle of a black and white casino room. It was small, and only had one table in the middle. Three lights were shining in the room, leaving a good part of the casino in shadows. One light was directly above the casino table, where two people sat, one woman and one man. One more person, a young man, was standing in the small half circle of a hole, dealing out a hand of black jack.  
"Man, you guys are playing another game of blackjack? Doesn't that get old?" He asked.  
The three other people said nothing. The woman brushed her fingers through her magenta hair and shot the boy a cold glare with her startling blue eyes.  
"Oh, calm down Sharp. It's the only thing we can do at the moment. The Gambling King hasn't given us orders to go searching for minions yet."  
The woman's voice was cold, indifferent and velvety smooth. Sharp almost wanted to listen to her, her voice was so coxing. He shook his dirty green haired head. "No! I'm tired of waiting! I just-"

The boy would have said more, but a black, red and grey playing card slapped his mouth shut. He peeled the card from his mouth, and smirked. As it turned out, he had his orders.  
"Well... I'll see you suckers later. Let's go stir up some mayhem."

"We have to find Cure Poker~lingu!" Darling, a small pink deer, said.  
"But she could be anywhere~rayray!" Razor, a small blue bird, responded.  
"But we have coordinates! How could we not be able to find her! We're close, I know that much~roro!" Keroro, a green frog, said.  
The three fairies flew high above the countryside. They didn't know it, but they were flying over rice fields, far outside the city of Kōunchi. The city was the last known location of a message the three received from their superior, Chula. Chula was the fairy partner to the Land of Card's legendary Cure Poker. Darling, Razor and Keroro were partners in training; hopeful fairies to one day partner with a powerful Pretty Cure Warrior. Darling, the only female of the three, was determined to make it to Kōunchi. They had to. The Gambling King was moving his forces to this place called Earth. And she knew that once Chula took Cure Poker to this place, she would have no way of knowing what was going on back home. "We can't give up! We have to tell Chula that this place is in danger~lingu!"

****************  
As it is in the human nature, when the lunch bell rang, all the students flocked to Oshiro Yui. They bombarded her with questions, and the girl only looked at them. Kichi observed the situation from a small distance. Well, as big of a distance as one can get in a middle school classroom. Audrey and Madoka were making small talk next to Kichi. Audrey was talking about a new poem she wanted to write, and Madoka was saying that she should make it about basketball. Audrey was the first to notice Kichi's intense glare at the mob of people.  
"Kichi?"  
Audrey followed Kichi's glare to Yui's desk. She could hear the chatter, but she took note that the girl wasn't answering.  
"Why do they keep asking her all these questions? Don't they notice that she's not answering?" Kichi asked. Her voice had a slight harshness to it.  
"Who knows? They're all crazy. I don't know why everyone wants to be the new kid's friend. I feel for Oshiro-san. I remember what she's feeling right now. But I at least made an effort to answer some of the questions you all asked me." Madoka mused.  
Kichi made no answer; she was nibbling fiercely on an octopus hot dog, a fire building up in her eyes.  
"I'm actually surprised Kichi hasn't-" Audrey started.

"HEY! Guys! Can't you see you're overwhelming her?!" Kichi finally let her thoughts fly.  
She forced herself up and out of her desk and walked over to the mob of students around Yui.  
"All right, all right. Break it up."  
"It seems I spoke too soon…" Audrey said, a weak smile on her face as Kichi shooed the student's back to their desks, remarking about how eating was more important than harassing the new girl.  
The students grumbled at Kichi ruining their fun, but walked back to their cliques and ate regardless. Kichi turned her attention to Yui.  
"Why don't you come sit with us?" Kichi asked.  
"Why would I do that?" Kichi's smile faltered for a second, taken aback by Yui's blunt remark.  
"Well... because me and the other two won't bombard you with questions! We want to get to know you!"

Yui's brows furrowed, trying to understand the request made to her. Nevertheless, the black haired girl stood and walked the short steps over to the window that Kichi, Audrey and Madoka were sitting at. She stood, not understanding that she had an open invitation. Part of her felt like she should know that an invitation had been extended to her, but at the same time, it felt foreign to her. The whole world felt foreign.

**********************  
The day soon ended, and the students filed out of the school. Sharp floated high above the crowd of students, surveying them for potential minions. The Gambling King was always wanting more lives to risk, more lives to add to his collection, more lives to gamble away to enemies. But not any old person could become a loyal subject to the King. Sharp's eyes flashed a dark green, scanning the students for any signs of greed. Greed is what Sharp's group, the Card Shark Quartet, needed to exploit for the Gambling King. The students had varying levels of greed. But none of them stood out to him. He then turned his attention to those that were still inside the school building. No outrageous levels there either.

Sharp stared at the black, grey and red card in his hand, a large "A" was on the face side of the card.  
"What's the point of even having this if no one in this town has any greed? There's no way these people can be humans? After what I've heard about them?" Sharp continued to scan the crowd in his altered gaze. A student finally filed out of the front door, a bright red in Sharp's vision.  
"Perfect."  
Sharp turned himself invisible and floated over to the student. The student was a young boy, apparently in a class with a girl named Kichi. Sharp listened to the boy's thoughts. He wanted Kichi gone, and for him to have all the attention of his classmates. The young boy wanted everyone to be his friend. He wanted to be the one that the new student looked up to.  
_'You can have that, you know that right?'_  
The boy, startled, jerked his head in every direction, trying to find out where the voice had come from. Sharp spoke again.

_'I can make your dreams a reality. Just place all your greed and desire on this card.'_ The card appeared in the boy's hands, and Sharp disappeared. The Avari would appear in due time. All he had to do was sit and watch.

**********************  
The three faires floated through the sky, finally having made it to the city. The citizens of the town looked like small ants from their height. They were warned that humans weren't used to seeing things other than other humans speak, so they had to be careful. By now, each fairy could sense Chula's presence down in the city. They flew to it like a beacon. They flew to a hill in an otherwise deserted park, a single tree sat at the top of the hill. A young woman in white, puffy clothing stood underneath in the shade. She had fair skin, startling white hair that was brought up into two buns, one on each side of her head. One bun had a golden ribbon holding it together. The girl looked to be about twenty or so years old, for a human that is.  
"Chula-sama! We've finally found you~lingu!" Darling exclaimed.  
The young woman, looked up with eyes so grey, they almost blended in with the whites of her eyes.  
"So it seems. But I'm rather confused. Why are three fairies-in-training here on earth?" Chula asked.

She had felt the three fairies make their way to the planet. She gave them her location, but their presence had raised many questions.  
"The Queen surrendered the Land of Cards to the Gambling King~rayray!"  
"But apparently it wasn't enough~roro! He wants more minions~roro." Razor and Keroro chimed in.  
Chula gave no response, but she noticed Yui walking up to the hill. She told the fairies to hide themselves. Cure Poker's transition to the human world had given her a new persona. One that knew nothing about her origins.  
"Nice to see you again, partner." Yui said nothing. She looked around, looking for an answer, a way out... whatever it was, Chula didn't know. The girl was on the verge of saying something when she suddenly doubled forward. She clenched her chest; her breathing became labored. Chula, in a panic, froze. This was the first time something like this had happened. Yui fell to her hands and knees, and soon became a figure of glowing white light.

"There's an Avari awakening."

******************  
Audrey and Madoka had gone to their respective club meetings. Audrey had to present a new poem, while Madoka said that the first game of the season was just around the corner, and practice was all she had time for until then. Kichi didn't mind. She had other things to worry about herself. She made her way to the theatre room. There wasn't a meeting today, but Kichi went to the theatre room everyday to work on the play the club was working on at the time. This semester, the club was working on an adaptation of Hamlet. Kichi wasn't in the room for long before a one of the students in her class burst through the room.  
"Huh? Kenta-kun?"  
The boy didn't say anything. He just stood in the door frame, giving Kichi one of the stinkiest stink eye. Kenta kept his gaze on Kichi for what seemed like forever. Kichi looked around the room. She knew no one else was here, but she often came into the room like it was her second home, often ignoring anyone else that might be there.

When Kichi brought her eyes back to the door, Kenta was gone.  
"Well that was weird..."  
Kichi went back to her preparations, when about half an hour after Kenta left, she heard screams from outside.

***************  
The card that Sharp had given the boy appeared in his hands. The "A" on the face was normally white on the grey face. But now it was black. Sharp smirked. "AVARI! TAKE YOUR GREED AND FULFILL YOUR DESIRES!" He yelled, throwing the card in front of him.  
The card flew about five or so feet in front of the Card Shark before stopping, still spinning in place. The card turned completely black and began to change it's shape; smokey black tendrils spread outwards from the black mass. A monster, with the card as its body, thin black limbs protruded at the four corners, the hands ending in red gloves, the feet in red clown shoes appeared. The monster had a black circle for a head, and two red, angry looking eyes struck fear into anyone that looked at them.  
"AVARRIII!" It shouted.  
The monster began shooting red beams of energy from its eyes. Sharp floated near the monster, shouting encouragement left and right. No way a Pretty Cure Warrior was going to get in his way.

************  
Kichi ran down the steps as fast as she could, trying to get out of the building and to somewhere safe. When she made it to the courtyard, she saw the large card monster stomping around the school, shooting laser beams from its eyes.  
"What the heck is that?!" Kichi didn't expect an answer, but she couldn't help but stare at the monster.  
The monster turned and set its gaze on Kichi. Kichi froze as she noticed the monster charging up its eyes. No doubt she would have been burnt to a crisp, but a young woman, a girl about the same age as Kichi, slammed into her. Kichi fell to the ground about four or five feet from where she was originally standing. A girl clad in white and pale pink stood before her.  
"Whoa... Hey, thanks for saving... my... butt..."

Kichi's words trailed off as the White Warrior ran off. Kichi watched the girl in pure amazement. How awesome was it that a super hero appearing out of nowhere and just saving her. Three small figures floated down to Kichi. One was a small pink deer, one a small blue eagle, and the last a green and white frog. They looked like animals out of an anime. Kichi saw that they were cheering for a Cure Poker. Kichi's shifted her gaze to the White Warrior. She could only assume that the girl's name was Cure Poker.  
"Is... Is she like some sort of Magical Girl?!" Kichi also read and watched a lot of anime.  
She was familiar with the concept of super heroines like the one before her. But the monster was a bit stronger than Cure Poker appeared to have expected. Kichi saw that the girl was faltering. Something was throwing her off.

"Hey! Monster! This way, ya creep!"  
The Avari turned once more to Kichi. It looked confused, but it jumped at the chance to stomp around in a different direction. Kichi ran towards a small empty parking lot not far from the school. The monster followed. She was determined to help the girl. The three flying animals caught up to her. They were asking her questions about what it was she was doing. Kichi didn't answer, but she stood her ground.  
"If you want someone to fight, then I'm your enemy!"  
And in that moment, a flash of pink light appeared in front of Kichi. The light faded, and in front of Kichi, there was a two toned pink card in front of her. The actual card was a pale pink, and it had a hot pink heart in the middle.  
"Whaaaaaa! That means... That means you're a Pretty Cure~lingu!"

Kichi looked at the pink deer that spoke. A what? Kichi thought. The deer was suddenly surrounded by a puff of pink smoke, and was now a cellphone... Or at least, she looked like a cellphone. She shouted directions at Kichi. Pretty Cure... Card Play? Was that what she said? She took the card, and the speaking cellphone. "Pretty Cure! Card Play!"  
Kichi slid the card through a small opening at the top of the phone. Then, the touch pad lit up with a box with four lines all intersecting in the center of the box. Kichi made a "T" shape, and soon she was surrounded with pink light. Her blond hair glowed with this pink light and shot out of her head, and split into two twin tails. Two ribbons appeared with hearts in the center at the base of these twin tails, sitting right on top of her head. She brought her hands together to make a heart snap. More pink light glowed, and a pale pink ribbon with a hot pink heart jewel pinged into existence on her chest. Strands of darker pink light flew around Kichi's body, and pinged into a top torso part, exposing her stomach. A second set of dark pink strands circled around her waist and hips, and pinged into a short skirt with compression shorts underneath. Two wrist length gloves pinged on her hands, two red-pink hearts sitting on top of her hands. Then she danced around on her feet, and leaned back on her heels as two pink boots appeared around her legs. She spun around one final time, the small cellphone attaching itself to her waist, and a dark pink bow pinged on the back of her skirt. When all was said and done, Kichi struck a pose and heard herself say something completely strange, but it sounded right to her.

"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"


	2. The Warrior of Hearts, Cure Trump!

Kichi, or, Cure Trump looked down at her new, transformed appearance.  
"Whaaa...? I've... transformed?!"  
Cure Trump twirled around, trying to get a full glimpse of what she had become.  
"What are you doing?! Get out of the way! You're going to get hurt."  
Trump stopped moving to see the White Warrior make her way over. Trump cursed under her breath. How could she have forgotten about the monster problem? Cure Trump turned and ran.  
"Okay! I'm running! But... what else am I supposed to do?"  
The White Warrior didn't respond. Instead, she continued to fight the card monster. Trump marveled at how high the girl could jump, how powerful her punches could be. Could she do that too? Trump didn't have time to test out what her transformed self had given her. The monster had directed his gaze on her and shot another round of eye beams. Trump turned and ran once more.

"Can you do anything but run?"  
The girl in white scolded. Trump was about to make a comment, but the girl was no longer paying attention. She was gearing up for something else.  
"_Begin the risky game! Poker Barrage!_"  
As the girl said he first half of her little speech, orbs of white energy appeared around her. Some where solid masses of white energy. Others were transparent enough to see "P"s in the middle of them. The orbs flew forward, but the monster was one step ahead of the girl in white and had charged up another attack of eye beams. Red energy met white and an explosion was the result. Trump covered her eyes from the dust that was now floating around her. When the dust had settled, she could see the Poker Barrage girl fighting once again.  
"Poker... Barrage?"  
"That's Cure Poker's way of attacking and purifying Avaris~lingu!"  
Cure Trump had almost forgotten that there was a small deer in the form of a cellphone attached to her hip.  
"Do I have one of those?"  
"Of course you do! But I don't know what it's called. You have to figure that out for yourself~lingu!"

Of course she had to figure it out for herself. Cure Trump decided that it was time to stop standing around. She readied herself, angling her feet and spreading her legs apart. She burst forward with a sudden rush of power. Trump couldn't believe she had this kind of power now. Instantly, it was as if a ghost of a professional fighter took over her body. She was landing kicks and punches like she had been doing it all her life. Trump dodged some of the throws the monster would take at her. But the ghost knew how to deflect and protect herself from them. However, Trump was extremely new to this. She didn't see the second fist come towards her and knock her back into the pavement below.  
"Ouch..."  
Trump lay flat in a small crater on the ground. This monster was tough, and she was getting fed up. It was time to end this, once and for all. The small cellphone creature was shouting at Cure Trump now.  
"You can do it now~lingu! Attack the Avari with your purification attack~lingu!"

The pink heart in the middle of Cure Trump's chest glowed with streaks of pink light. She nodded her head, and charged to the card monster once again.  
"_I'll show you my trump card!_"  
She shouted. She clapped her hands together and laced her fingers together. Her hands also began to glow with pink light. She extended both her index fingers, making the signature hand gun so many knew. She thrust her arms forward and shouted:  
"_Trump Shot!_"  
The pink light concentrated into a small orb at the tips of her index fingers before flying forward, the recoil causing Cure Trump's arms to rise above her head. The shot of pink energy flew towards the monster and landed square in the middle of the card body. The whole monster glowed with pink energy before imploding, pink smoke flying everywhere. Kenta, the boy Trump had encountered earlier, lay on the ground, his eyes closed, but his chest rising up and down to signal to Cure Trump that he was alive. A red, black and grey card flitted down to the ground. And when it did, it burned to ashes the moment it touched the pavement.

The White Warrior landed a couple feet from Cure Trump's spot on the ground.  
"Nice job... For a new girl."  
Trump jerked her head in the girl's direction.  
"That was amazing! But... what exactly just happened? Who is Cure Trump? Is that me? And what was that thing? What did I just do with my hands? And wait... Who are you?"  
The questions flew out of Cure Trump's mouth before she could take control of her thoughts and bodily control.  
"You see that little deer on your waist? She can answer all of those questions. I have to go."  
Trump's brows furrowed. She didn't like not getting an answer. She opened her mouth to give the girl in white a piece of her mind before the girl in white turned to face her.  
"But I will answer the last question. My name is Cure Poker."

* * *

So Kichi was something called a Pretty Cure Warrior. Kichi stared at the text in front of her, not paying attention to the lecture. All she could think of was the conversation she had with the small deer fairy, named Darling, the night before.  
"You're a Pretty Cure Warrior! I'm from the Land of Cards! The Gambling King has taken over our land! And we need you to help us get it back~lingu!"  
Of course, Darling's friends had to stay with Kichi. Kichi learned that all three of these faires had the power to partner a Pretty Cure Warrior. They were apparently still in training, but Kichi's experience with Darling made her think she was ready for it. Still, it was a duty that Kichi wasn't sure she could handle.  
"Abe-san!"  
Kichi snapped out of her trance and jerked a little in her seat. The teacher had apparently called her name a number of times before using a sharp tone.  
"Please, read the passage for us."

* * *

"Look, I've told you. That pest Poker was there. And then another one showed up!"  
Sharp was the youngest of the group, and was always being picked on by his three group members. But suffering a loss on his first attempt? He had to stand his ground.  
"That ain't no excuse! You gotta get back out der and get a minion for da Gamblin' King!"  
Sharp's murky green eyes rested on the hulking figure of Cas. Cas was the closest thing Sharp had to an older brother, but the feeling was far from familial. Swindla, the woman with magenta hair, said nothing, opting to primp her features in a small hand mirror. Rounder, the Card Shark's leader, stood behind the casino table, shuffling cards. Sharp was most worried about what Rounder would say. Cas may have muscle and power, but that's all he's got. Rounder had brains with his already extraordinary power. Rounder kept his cool, however.  
"So then, Sharp,"  
Sharp gulped. Rounder's voice was unnervingly calm and steely. The young man's piercing blue eyes rose from the deck of cards that he was absentmindedly shuffling.  
"Go and try again." Rounder threw another black, grey and red card at Sharp, and Sharp disappeared.

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay, Kichi? You were acting weird in class today."  
Audrey asked. Kichi, Audrey and Madoka walked down a side walk, heading to their usual after school café hang out called Tea Card. Kichi was staring down at her bag. Inside held one of the biggest secrets she'd kept from her friends.  
"I don't know. I just woke up in a weird mood this morning, I guess." Audrey shot a glance at Madoka, both girls nodding.  
"Well, maybe you need some tea and cookies to feel better."  
The girls entered the shop, having beaten the after school rush by minutes.  
"Ah, there's my favorite middle schoolers!"

A girl of about seventeen walked up to the front of the shop.  
"Hey Hoshiko-senpai!"  
Madoka said.  
"Usual table?"  
The girls all nodded and Hoshiko took them to their usual spot, a table situated near the front, but in a corner of two large windows.  
"Come on Kichi. Tell us what's going on. We only want to help."  
Said Audrey. The girls ordered their usual teas and something to eat from Hoshiko: a plate of cookies for Kichi, a scone for Audrey and a protein bar for Madoka. The food and drinks arrived, and Kichi still hadn't said much to her friends. She stared at her plate of cookies, a conflict warring inside her. Kichi comically put her hands on her head.  
"Gaaaah! I don't know if I can tell you!"  
Kichi exclaimed, slamming her head into the table. "  
Ouch... Look. All I know is that something... serious happened and I don't know if I'm at liberty to discuss it!"  
Kichi's words were muffled, her face still on the table. Audrey and Madoka sipped their tea, exchanging looks.  
"Then don't tell us."  
Madoka said, sipping her tea.  
"Don't say that! Because now I really want to tell you!"  
"Then tell us!" Audrey half shouted.  
"I don't know if I can!"

* * *

Sharp once agan was out and about, scouring the city for a greedy person to manipulate. He focused on a different area this time. The school was hardly any luck the first time. He needed a person with a stronger greed. A greed preferably for money, or power. Adults would make perfect suspects for this. In the heart of the town, there were people with much stronger greed levels. But there weren't many that were stronger than the boy he found the day before. He flew around lazily after half an hour of searching and having no luck. He floated around a small tea shop next to a large sky scraper. A man of seemingly extreme power was about to walk into the shop. Sharp jerked into an upright position, the greed level from the man the strongest he'd had all day.

He once again turned himself invisible and followed the man before he entered the shop.  
"I can give you everything you want. I can give you more than what you have. Just take this card and place all your greed and desires into it. It will give you what you want."  
The card had an instantaneous effect. Once Sharp placed it in the man's hand, he at first looked confused, but a flash of bright red light triggered a transformation.  
"AVARI! TAKE ALL YOUR GREED AND FULFILL YOUR DESIRES!"  
When the light had settled, a large briefcase monster, with the same black limbs and red gloves and shoes, stood. It had two large, glowing red eyes on the side, and a red and black "A" sat in-between it's eyes.  
"GIVE ME ALL YOUR MONEY! GIVE ME ALL YOUR WORKERS! GIVE ME ALL YOUR LAND! MORE! I NEED MORE!"  
The monster shouted, sending all the civilians into a panic.

* * *

Kichi spit her tea out when she saw the giant briefcase monster stomping around outside the tea shop.  
"Everyone out of the shop now! Get somewhere safe!" Hoshiko shouted.  
"Kichi, we need to go!"  
Audrey took Kichi's hand, but Kichi had no choice but to pull it out of Audrey's grasp. It pained her to see Audrey's confused, hurt look on her face.  
"You guys get out! I'll... uh.. I'll help Hoshiko get people out of the shop!"  
But Kichi had no intention of helping Hoshiko. It sounded like something she would normally say, so she wasn't worried about Audrey or Madoka not believing her. But she had to get out of the shop to transform. Darling made it very clear that she had to keep her identity a secret. Once she got partners, she'd have people to talk about being a warrior with. But the only other warrior was Cure Poker, and she disappeared after their first battle. And it was clear that Poker didn't to do much with Kichi.

Kichi rushed towards the back, through the empty kitchens, and burst out of the back door into an empty alley. She took a deep breath, taking Darling in her cell phone form, out of her pocket.  
"Are you ready~lingu?"  
Kichi closed her eyes for a second and took in a second deep breath.  
"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"

* * *

The briefcase monster continued to stomp around the streets surrounding the tea shop and other skyscrapers. This monster didn't have laser beam eyes. Instead, it opened it's laches, opened up and let loose giant sheets of paper that exploded when they hit the ground.  
"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"

Sharp jerked his head of dirty green hair in Trump's direction.  
"Damn. She's here. Of course she's here."  
"Hey! Mr. Briefcase! Stop destroying things!"  
The Avari turned towards Trump, a small expression of confusion on his face. He then opened up his front half, and fired more sheets of exploding paper at her. "What were you expecting to do with just saying that~lingu?!"  
Darling exclaimed from Trump's waist. Cure Trump spun on her heel and ran in the opposite direction of the exploding paper.  
"I don't know!" Trump admitted.  
As she ran, not thinking to try and zigzag her way away from the monster, Trump began to wonder where the other warrior was. Cure Poker was nowhere to be found.

Not having much choice, Cure Trump finally thought to try and get out of the monster's way. She jumped straight up, and arched backwards over the monster, landing behind it. She ran up to the Avari, wanting to test out her new strength that she gained as a Pretty Cure Warrior. She began attacking the Avari; punching him in various spots, kicking him in different areas. But her attacks only seemed to bother him. He let loose a flurry of exploding paper. They hit Trump this time, sending her flying backwards into a wall. She was beginning to realize why there were more than just one Cure Warrior. She continued to survey her surroundings. The White Warrior was still nowhere to be found. Trump had to accept the fact that Cure Poker would not be coming to her rescue today. Today, it was just her and the Avari.  
"You know... You're supposed to be this big, bad, powerful warrior. But you're being tossed around by this guy like a rag doll! You're no warrior! You should be ashamed to call yourself a Pretty Cure Warrior!"

Trump, struggling to get herself upright from the hole in the wall she created, flashed her golden eyes in Sharp's direction.  
"Hey! Don't you dare insult me!"  
Sharp was on the verge of saying something else when he heard Trump's response. He stopped and focused his attention on her, motioning for the Avari to pause for a short while.  
"I wouldn't sell me short just yet, you jerk! I beat you yesterday didn't I? Who's to say I can't beat you again?!"  
Trump finally pushed herself out of the hole and dusted herself off. She hadn't heard much of this guy talk, but what he had said had already made her not like him. Her golden eyes burned with a determination to defeat the jerk floating a few yards away from her. Trump sprung into action, once more taking on the Avari monster.

"Pretty Cure Punch!"  
Trump let her determination and anger free as she attacked the monster. She could tell she was wearing it down. The exploding paper came less and less often; the monster began to stagger backwards, trying its hardest to retreat from her. She could tell she was winning. It was time to finish this. She pulled Darling out from her waist, and drew a golden cross on the track pad on the phone's cover. Her pink heart gem resting on her chest glowed with pink energy.  
"_I'll show you my trump card! Trump Shot!_"  
Trump clapped her hands together, lacing her fingers together, leaving her index fingers extended. Her hand gun began to glow with pink energy, eventually leaving her hands and forming a pink energy orb on the tips of her index fingers. As she said "Trump Shot" the energy ball flew forward, the recoil sending Trump's arms above her head.

The pink energy bullet hit the monster square in the center, and came out through the back.  
"Ava... Avari!"  
The monster said weakly. It then became a pink version of itself, and imploded with pink smoke. When the smoke cleared, the business man was laying on the ground, unconscious. The card floated down to the ground and burned into ashes on contact. Another monster down. The destruction that was made by the monster disappeared in a flash of white light. Trump let out a relieved sigh. There was no one around, so she let her transformation unravel.  
"Boy, I hope it isn't like this every day." -

* * *

Cure Poker stood atop a tall building, overlooking the battle below. She turned her head slightly to the small white mouse resting on her shoulder.  
"She's not bad, actually. But she's not ready to partner up with me. She needs to find the rest of her team first."  
Chula said nothing, but nodded her small white head.  
"But you'll join her eventually... right~de chu?"  
Chula said after a short while. Poker said nothing.  
"Poker, you can't beat the Gambling King on your ow-"  
"I can try."  
Chula got that the discussion was over. Poker jumped off the ledge she was standing on. She could feel her human consciousness trying to force it's way back to the surface.

* * *

The craziness of getting people out of the shop had left Audrey exhausted for a short while. However, when the explosions started, Hoshiko had told Audrey to stay indoors. Madoka had been outside, and left with the other people. Hoshiko hid in the kitchen, while Audrey decided to boldly stay in the front portion of the shop. Surprisingly, none of the monster's attacks hit the shop, but the explosions caused everything inside to rattle and shake. Some cups and plates had fallen off the now empty tables. Glass littered the floor, forcing Audrey to stay near the window that the girls were sitting at just ten or so minutes earlier. It had been a wild, crazy, and long ten minutes. When Audrey dared to look out the window once more, she saw a girl, with long, bright pink hair, decked out in a pink outfit. Audrey thought she belonged in a cartoon or an anime. Yet she watched the fight with fascination.

The fight went on for a while. Audrey flinched when the girl was thrown around. Before the battle ended, she was flung into a wall next to the shop. Audrey saw a boy with green hair floating in the air, his mouth moving, but too far away for Audrey to even hear the mumble of his words. She turned her attention to the girl next to her, and heard muffled calls of motivation. She finally finished the fight, the boy disappearing and the monster returning to his original form. What happened next caused Audrey's jaw to drop.

"Kichi?!"  
Audrey burst through the front door of the shop, disbelief written all over her face. Kichi stiffened, turning slowly towards Audrey's voice.  
"Uuh. Audrey! H-how much of that did-did you see?"  
Audrey gave no answer, words unable to form on her lips. The fact that her best friend just took down some monster with magical powers was more than too much for Audrey to take in.  
"A-all of it"  
Kichi asked sheepishly, putting her hand on the back of her head as a nervous smile spread across her face. Audrey, still stunned, slowly nodded her head. She fought her current state of mind to try and form words. Kichi didn't seem to be willing to give her any explanations either.  
"Is that... Is that what you were t-trying to tell us at the table?"  
Kichi's smile faded. She gave a short nod. She brought the cellphone in her hand up for Audrey to see.  
"This is Darling. She says she's my partner. Apparently I'm something called a Pretty Cure warrior now..."


	3. The Elegant Fighter, Cure Royal!

It had been a couple days since Kichi's last fight with an Avari. Audrey had become Kichi's confidant. Since that day, Audrey found out about Darling, Razor, Keroro, Cure Poker and the Land of Cards. It was a lot to take in, but it was giving her some inspiration for poems. There weren't ones she'd ever read aloud to the Poetry Club, but it got her writing, which was always a good thing. Especially since the Poetry Club was about to have their annual Poetry School Reading. It was sort of a way to get new students to join the club. The president of the club was always seen running around, making sure preparations were complete. Audrey and Kichi saw a lot of one another since the Poetry Club had to use the auditorium, and the Theatre Club was still working on their set for Hamlet. The two didn't see much of Madoka either since she was busy with basketball as well.

"So, Kichi,"  
Audrey started, the two on the roof for lunch.  
"I know you've only... transformed twice... but do you like being a Pretty Cure Warrior?"  
Kichi munched on a carrot and looked up at the sky. The three mascots were behind the two girls, nibbling on cookies Audrey had brought for them.  
"I guess you could say I do."  
"What do you mean "I guess"~lingu?!"  
Darling exclaimed, floating in front of Kichi. The partners locked eyes together for a short second before Kichi pushed her glasses up and shrugged her shoulders casually.  
"I mean, like Audrey said, I've only transformed twice! Plus, that Poker chick was pretty rude to me the first time. If I have to partner up with her, I don't know if I'll be able to keep myself from giving her a piece of my mind!"  
Audrey laughed at this. Kichi, being a drama student, tended to deliver heated statements as animatedly as she possibly could.

The door to the roof opened, and Madoka made her way forward. The three fairies scrambled behind Kichi and Audrey and transformed into their cellphone forms with poofs of different colored smokes.  
"Hey guys!"  
Madoka made her way to the bench and scooted in next to Audrey.  
"What were you girls talking about just now?"  
Audrey and Kichi shot nervous glances at one another, unsure of what to say.  
"The... uh.. Poetry School Reading tomorrow! We were talking about which, um, poem I was going to read for it."  
Audrey was a terrible liar. Madoka made a face at Audrey's lie, but decided she didn't want to press the nervous girl.  
"Uh... huh."  
The door opened once more, this time a boy with fiery red hair and a smug look on his face. "Audrey! Did you hear?! There's going to be a publishing representative at the reading tomorrow! Apparently if they like one of us enough, they'll want to publish our story!"  
"No, Ryota-kun. I didn't hear that. But that's amazing that a publisher got wind of our reading!"

"I'll have to write the very best poem for them! So awesome they can't help but choose me! And then they'll want more from me! And I'll become famous! And I'll become rich!"  
The smile that had formed on Audrey's face when Ryota told her about the representative had faded. Her eyebrows furrowed, and her expression became perplexed.  
"Well, that's find and dandy, but you really should be writing to connect with someone. Not think about those material things."  
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I can't talk now, I'll have to go get my genius on the page before I lose anything!"  
Ryota started back for the door, but Madoka caught his shoulder.  
"Listen to what she said, jerk. Don't make this about yourself. This is about the school."  
Ryota turned to face Madoka. He was confused at first, but his face lit up with a horrible sense of recognition.

"Y-y-you're Hattori Madoka! Please don't kill me!" The boy said, freeing himself of Madoka's grasp and running back to the door. Madoka smirked, and pat her hands together like she was getting dust off of them.  
"And that takes care of that."  
Audrey and Kichi sat next to Madoka, their faces full of disbelief.  
"Uh... Madoka... what did he mean by that, exactly?"  
Kichi ventured. Madoka sat back down and opened her bento box before turning to the girls on her left. "You two have your secrets. I have mine."

* * *

The mood in the dark casino was tense. Sharp sat in the center of the game table, Rounder lazily shuffling cards. Swindla was sitting on Sharp's left, her face and eyes glued to the compact in her hand. Cas was on Sharp's right, eating a huge plate of ribs. Sharp kept his eyes down, not having looked up from the backs of his palms in what seemed like an eternity.  
"What's the matter, Sharp?"  
Rounder inquired. Sharp kept his mouth shut. He knew Rounder was just looking for trouble. The older teen was about to say something again to get Sharp to speak, but the familiar Avari card flitted down to the table. Sharp broke his concentration on his hands and was about to snatch up the card. But Rounder was faster.  
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Not today Sharp. You need some time to get a plan together on how to defeat the Pretty Cure Warriors. Today, Cas gets to go."

Sharp said nothing, but wanted to say everything. Cas, however, hadn't heard Rounder's remark, his attention fully on his plate of ribs. Rounder's mouth twitched upwards, a usual sign for annoyance.  
"CAS!"  
"Huh?"  
"Take this card and go get a minion for the King!"  
Cas finally broke his gaze from his plate and looked up at Rounder; the teen's blue eyes were scary enough to make Cas want to look back down at his plate.  
"Yeah, yeah! 'S my turn now!"  
Cas said, excitedly taking the card from Rounder's outstretched arm. It was his time to shine now. He would do better than Sharp. He had to.

* * *

The rest of the day went by without a hassle. Luckily for Audrey and Kichi, the confrontation with Ryota had caused Madoka to forget about the fact that she wanted to find out about what the girls were talking about. Either that, or she knew she wasn't going to get an honest answer out of the two of them so she didn't try. Audrey was just glad to be back home. She was upstairs, sitting at her desk flipping through her poem notebook to see what poem she wanted to read for the event tomorrow. For reasons unknown to Audrey, the bird fairy, Razor, had decided he didn't want to stay with Kichi anymore. He came home with Audrey instead. He was an interesting creature for Audrey to experience.  
"So what's the Land of Cards like?"  
Razor looked at the girl, deciding on what to say. She could see the small fairy thinking.  
"It's hard to put into words~rayray. But... if I had to... I would say it's a wonderful place with great opportunities~rayray. Kind of like earth~rayray."  
Audrey turned back to her notebook. Something struck with her after Razor answered her. She took her pen out and began to write down everything that she could.  
"What are you doing~rayray?" The small bird asked. When Audrey didn't answer, he decided he would let her concentrate.

The day of the Poetry Reading finally arrived. The school day had finally passed as well. Audrey rushed to the Poetry Club's room, ready to get the final preparations ready for the evening. When she got there, Ryota was running his mouth on how he was going to be the one that get's published. Audrey rolled her eyes, not really wanting to hear him praise himself. If Audrey was honest, his poetry wasn't all that great. Though she would never say it like that. He did have potential, but he needed a lot of work. Kichi and Madoka had made their way to the room as well. Kichi ran up and hugged Audrey from behind.  
"I know you're going to kill it tonight, Audrey! Who cares about Ryota-kun? All you need to do is read your best poem, and that'll shut him up."  
"That guy really bugs me..."  
Madoka said. Audrey embraced Kichi's sudden hug, steadying herself against trying to fall on her face. She smiled. She love it when her friends came and gave her encouragement.  
"Thanks you two. I think I've picked out the right poem too. Razor helped me write it."

Audrey said that last bit of information forgetting that Madoka was around. Her eyes widened, but luckily, Madoka didn't seem to hear it. Audrey let out a sigh of relief as she realized that Madoka was talking to another girl next to them.  
"Ooh. That was close. We need to be careful about that stuff."  
Kichi said, letting go of Audrey.  
"Careful about what?"  
Audrey and Kichi turned to face Madoka, but before either of them could give her a lie, Ryota walked up to them, a smug smile on his face.  
"Are you ready, Audrey? I hope the representative likes yours. But I know she'll like mine too."  
Audrey said nothing. Kichi said nothing. Madoka said nothing. Ryota looked back and forth between the three girls, waiting for them to say something. When they didn't, he awkwardly shuffled his way out of the classroom, heading for the auditorium.  
"Strike what I said earlier. That guy pisses me off."

* * *

Evening was quickly coming, and Cas hadn't done the job given to him twenty-four hours ago. He had managed to blend in with the crowd after magically changing his appearance when he kept getting odd looks. He looked about thirty years old, but his natural outfit was odd. He normally wore a black vest over a white button up, but the sleeves of the button up were ripped off to account for his bulging arm muscles. Oddly, he liked the cuffs, so he had ripped those off and placed them around his wrists. To finish off his look, he had a pair of dark orange pants, and a mohawk of orange hair to match. Apparently, that was too much for some. He had a plate of food in his hands as he walked around the lobby of the school he found. There was a reading going on at this school, and Sharp had told him this was where Cure Trump attended. He scanned the crowds of people around him, looking for a greedy person to take advantage of.

It didn't take him long. A boy with fiery red hair had made his way into the lobby, a smug grin on his face. Cas didn't need to look at him through what he liked to call "Greed-o-vision." This boy had something on his mind that made him think he was better than everyone else. He made his way over.  
"Whatchu smiling about, boy?"  
"Huh? Who are you? Look, old man, if you're not with the publishing company, I don't want to hear about it."  
Luckily, Cas was quicker on his feet than his group members would think.  
"Yeah, yeah. I am with the publishin' company."  
The boy eyed him suspiciously. Cas couldn't tell what he was thinking, but eventually the boy lightened up and smiled.  
"I thought you were going to be a woman, but hey! If you'll get me published, then I'm all for it!"  
Cas took out the card from his pocket.  
"This is my business card. Just place all your desires onto it."  
Ryota took the card, and the magic embedded in it began to work instantly.  
"AVARI! TAKE ALL YOUR GREED AND FULFILL OUR DESIRES!"

In a flash of dark red light, Ryota disappeared, and was replaced with a monster that consisted of five feather pens. The largest one made up the body, with the feather having the appearance of hair. The other pens made the arms and legs. It had two glowing red eyes on the wood of the body pen, and a white A just above them.  
"AVARI!"

* * *

"Kichi! Audrey! There's an Avari~lingu!"  
"Are you serious?!"  
Kichi said.  
"Here? Now? Why?"  
Audrey hissed.  
"I don't know~rayray! Kichi! You need to transform~rayray!"  
Kichi and Audrey looked at one another and nodded. Audrey ran for the lobby, leaving Kichi behind in the deserted Poetry Club room. Audrey heard Kichi shout her transformation phrase, running as fast as she could to the lobby. When she got there, the pen monster was smashing into walls, breaking everything. The people inside had cleared out for the most part, some of them still running for the doors, trying to get out.  
"Hurry everyone! You need to get out of here! It's not safe!"  
Audrey ran for the doors and gestured for people to get out. Most of them made it, some were trapped behind the monster, too frozen in fear to run forward. That's when Trump arrived. Audrey felt a little better when she saw her now pink haired friend burst out into the scene.  
"Hey! You just never stop do you? I'm starting to get ann-wait. You're not the guy from before!"

Trump had made a stance to get ready to fight when she realized that the guy from the past two times hadn't shown up.  
"So what if I ain't da guy from before! Alls I'm trying to do here is do my job, ya brat! Avari! Attack!"  
"I'M GOING TO BE FAMOUS! GIVE ME ALL THE MONEY! GIVE ME ALL THE DEALS!"  
The pen monster extended its arms down, the tips of the fountain pens aimed at Cure Trump. They glowed with purple light before shooting purplish black ink at Cure Trump. Trump, knowing she had the ability to do so now, backflipped out of the way and to safety.  
"Ha! You're going to have to do better than that!"  
The large puddle of ink began to steam, and soon it was now a few inches deeper into the floor.  
"Oh.. It's acid ink."  
Trump said, her smug expression fading. The Avari shot another spout of acid ink towards her, and she barely had enough time to get out of the way, she was so transfixed with the acid.  
"OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH!"  
She exclaimed, running away from the steaming blob of inky death behind her. Luckily, she managed to outrun the acid ink, but the Avari had another attack prepared. The feather portion of his head bent forward, firing quills from his feather at Trump. She deflected some, but others managed to graze her, giving her small red lines up and down her arms.

"Okay! You're starting to get on my nerves!"  
Darling floated up and she made a cross on the trackpad on Darling's phone surface. She clapped her hands together, lacing her fingers, index fingers extended in the hand gun position. Her hands glowed with pink energy.  
"_I'll show you my trump card!_"  
The energy moved from her entire hands to the tip of her fingers, concentrating into a small pink orb.  
"_Trump Shot!_"  
The pink ball flew forward, and Trump's arms shot back above her head. The pink bullet flew towards the Avari...but hit the wall, just left of the monster.  
"...I missed."  
Trump said flatly.  
"You missed~lingu."  
"She missed."  
Audrey said.  
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! YOU MISSED! Avari, take this brat out!"  
The pen monster moved forward to Cure Trump, who in turn turned around and ran.  
"How could I have missed?!"  
She said, her expression comically wild as the Avari chased her. She did her best to avoid volleys of quills and blobs of acid ink, but the Avari was showing to have more stamina than she.

Audrey looked on, wanting to look away after seeing Trump miss her shot. Literally. No matter how embarrassed she felt for Kichi, she felt even more worried about seeing her run hopelessly around the lobby. She didn't know what to do. She knew she wanted to help. She noticed that there were still people on the opposite side of the lobby, the Avari no longer blocking their escape route. Audrey dashed over to them.  
"Please, everyone remain calm! Just follow me and I'll take you to the exit!"  
She turned and heard the people's running footsteps as they followed her to the door. A small girl tripped, and Audrey had to hang back and help her.  
"Come on, I'll help you!"  
"I'm scared, miss!"  
It was then that Audrey realized the Avari and Cure Trump were headed their way. She pulled the little girl into her arms and ran for the exit.  
"Don't be scared. Cure Trump is going to do her best and defeat this thing!"  
She said, letting the girl down and telling her to go through the exit. She shut the door when Trump slammed into the wall next to her. Audrey's eyes widened in horror. Her best friend was getting tired. She could see it. She had to help. She ran in front of Cure Trump, arms extended.  
"I won't let you hurt Cure Trump any longer!"  
"Oh? An' wass a girl like yerself gonna do 'bout it?"

Audrey didn't have much of an answer, but she knew if she gave Trump some time to regain her composure, it would be enough.  
"I... I don't know! I may not be able to transform like Kichi, but I know that even as just a normal civilian, I can try my hardest to save my friend!"  
"Audrey..."  
"So if you want to get to Kichi, you'll have to go through me!"  
Audrey shouted. Suddenly, a flash of blue light appeared in front of Audrey. It concentrated and pinged into a blue and white card, a blue spade on the front, a blue bar code on the side. She took the card, not really knowing what it was, but it seemed right to her that she took it.  
"That's a Pretty Cure Card~rayray! You can use it to transform~rayray!"  
Audrey turned to the small blue bird. But he wasn't a bird anymore, he was a cellphone creature, like Darling. She took Razor into her hands. She was a Pretty Cure Warrior too? She could transform just like Kichi? Audrey heard Razor tell her what to do to transform. It was the same thing Kichi said. Her awed expression turned into tight determination. She would do it. For Kichi.

"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"  
She slid the card through the top of the phone, and made an "R" shape on the trackpad. Her transformation had begun. Her dark blue hair glowed with light blue light, the bun on her head growing in length, creating a pony tail that split in half. The rest of her hair shot out, and pinged into existence as a blue-ish white color, the hair splitting in half as well. When it settled, her hair was waist length. A bow pinged into existence at the top of her head, holding the pony tail together, and two dark blue spade earrings pinged onto her ears. A single strip of blue light spiraled around her torso, tightening, and then pinging into a dress. She took her hands and placed them over her chest, making her hands into an upside down heart, looking like she was making a spade figure. A white bow with a dark blue spade gem appeared in a flash of white-blue light. She flung her arms around, two elbow length, white and blue arm warmers appearing. On the back of her hand, two dark blue spades could be seen. She spun around on her toes, sliding an extended left leg backwards, and two white ankle height booties appearing. She spun around, Razor in his cellphone form attaching himself to her waist. Lastly, two bows appeared on both sides of her hips. After a bit more spinning around, she struck a pose.

"The Elegant Finishing Move! Cure Royal!"  
Light faded around Cure Royal. Cure Trump looked on in total amazement, her golden eyes gleaming with excitement. Cas was dumbfounded.  
"Wh-what da heck? There are two frickin' Pretty Cures?"  
Cure Royal looked up at Cas.  
"How dare you try and ruin the school's Poetry Reading! You've wrecked our lobby! You've ruined a fun night for everyone! Prepare yourself!"  
Cure Royal sprang instantly into action. She couldn't help but notice how much she actually wanted to be a Pretty Cure Warrior. She found herself overjoyed with the fact that she could move at the pace she could. It was like she was the wind itself. The Avari was fast, but Royal was faster. She moved side-to-side, dodging the Avari's advances. She jumped up, kicking it in various areas, punching it where she knew it would be effective. One final kick to what could only be assumed was the monster's chest, and he was sent flying.  
"More importantly, how dare you exploit a young man's dreams of wanting to write amazing poetry, and using it to beat up my best friend. I won't let you get away with this!"

By this time, Trump had managed to regain her footing and stood, grasping Royal's hand.  
"This night was important to Audrey! It's one of her favorite nights of the school year. And you had to show up, and just make it awful. We won't forgive you for this!"  
Cures Royal and Trump ran forward once more, ready to take down the monster together.  
"Double Pretty Cure Punch!"  
Both Cures jumped up and punched Cas in the chest. He too flew backwards, landing on top of his Avari.  
"Gah! I won't let you get away with this! Avari get up and crush those girls!"

Cure Royal turned to Trump. She took Trump's hand.  
"Cure Trump," She placed her other hand on their hands.  
"I may not fully understand what's going on right now. But let's finish this!"  
Trump's smile grew from ear to ear. She nodded, the two letting go of one another and taking a fighting stance. They both charged at the Avari, which had just gotten back on its feet. It shot out more acid ink at the girls, and both moved in perfect unison out of the way. Trump felt reenergized knowing that her one of her best friends had become a Pretty Cure Warrior. She punched and kicked at the Avari while Royal did her best to make sure Trump didn't get hurt. After a while, Razor spoke up to Royal. "The Avari has weakened~rayray! Now's your chance to purify it, Royal~rayray!"

Razor had floated up to Royal, his trackpad lighting up. Royal took him in her hand and made the cross on the trackpad. The spade jewel on her chest glowed, and she crossed her arms over it, the spades on the back of her hands glowing with blue light. Blue energy and wind surged around her. She spun around, waving her arms, while saying:  
"_Witness my sparkling strategy!_"  
She raised her hands above her head, and flung them outwards, level with her shoulders.  
"_Royal Breeze!_"  
A circle of curved, white blue lines appeared and flew towards the Avari. The wind energy hit the Avari square in the chest, and began to blow furiously all around it. It turned a light shade of blue, and exploded in the same light blue smoke. Ryota fell to the ground, unconscious. The card flitted to the ground, and when it touched the carpet, it burned into ashes on the spot. Cas was nowhere to be seen, and the wreckage that the Avari had caused disappeared with the appearance of a ray of light from above.

* * *

The poetry reading went on as planned. The people that had escaped seemed to have forgotten all about the incident earlier. Audrey was the last to go, and when she finished her poem, everyone clapped. The whole of the poetry club came out, and everyone stood and clapped. Audrey headed back to the Poetry Room, surprised to find Kichi, Darling, Razor and Keroro there.  
"Audrey, your poem was beautiful!"  
"Thank you Kichi! I'm glad you liked it! Razor helped me write it!"  
Razor blushed and turned his back to the girls.  
"It wasn't that big of a deal~rayray."  
He said, rubbing his foot in the chair he was standing on. The girls laughed.  
"So! Audrey! You're on my team! I never would have expected that!"

Audrey smiled. She wasn't sure what to think about it, but she at least knew that after seeing Kichi become a warrior, something about the whole thing made her want to be one too.  
"I'm glad we're on a team too! I hope we can do our best to save the Land of Cards! By the way, Keroro, aren't you supposed to have a partner too?"  
Audrey and Kichi turned to the green and white frog sitting on a chair with Darling. The frog looked down sheepishly.  
"I haven't found her yet~roro. I hope I can find her soon~roro!"  
Kichi bent down and picked the frog up, placing him on her shoulder!  
"Okay, team! Our new mission is to find Keroro's perfect partner! All in agreement, say 'aye'!"  
Audrey, Kichi, Darling, Razor and Keroro all thrust their fists into the air, all saying aye.


	4. The Burning Cure Straight!

Sneakers were screeching on the recently waxed floor. Shouts were being called and the "pang" of a basketball filled the practice gym.  
"I'm open!"  
Madoka called. Her teammate tossed the ball her way. Madoka caught the ball and instantly ran in the opposite direction, making sure that she was dribbling the ball as she did so. She was stopped as one of her other teammates ran in front of her. She stopped, clutched the ball with both hands and scanned the floor for possible openings. Her forest green eyes shot to the basket hanging above the floor. She was too far away to make a shot. She would have to pass to someone else. She tossed the ball over the teammate in front of her. A different teammate caught the ball, one that was on her mini-team for this particular scrimmage, and ran for the basket.  
"Shoot Himeko-chan!"  
Madoka ran for Himeko, trying her best to make sure that her scrimmage mate had a clear shot, the other girl jumped up, and the ball fell through the basket with a "shwoop." The coach blew her whistle, telling the girls that the scrimmage was now over.  
"Great scrimmage girls! Remember, the first game of the season is this Sunday! It's Friday today. I want you all to know that these next two practices will be a bit more rigorous! I want this season to start off with a bang, win or lose! Got that?"  
The girls all shouted "YES COACH!" and the coach dismissed them. Madoka let out a sigh of relief.

"This scrimmage was intense. I wonder how much more rigorous these practices can get."  
"Way to go Madoka!"  
Madoka looked upwards and smiled. Kichi and Audrey had been sitting the bleachers. They probably had cheered for her, but she was too in the zone when she played to have noticed them. But still, even if it was just a practice, Madoka was grateful for her friends' support.  
"You play with such passion, Madoka. It's really fun to watch you play."  
Audrey said.  
"Thanks Audrey. You guys want to head over to the café? I think we've still got sometime before I have to be home."

* * *

Yui stood on the hill overlooking the park. A breeze dragged her black hair across her face. The mysterious young woman with white hair stood next to her.  
"You still don't remember anything?"  
Chula asked. Yui closed her eyes. She felt like there was something missing. She couldn't remember anything up until the day she woke up looking into the yellow eyes of the woman next to her.  
"No."  
She said. The young woman on her right said nothing. They didn't have a home. Though Yui wasn't quite sure what homes were. Everything about this world seemed strange and foreign to her. It was as if she belonged somewhere else. And it didn't help that she couldn't remember anything.  
"What is it I'm supposed to remember? I feel like I'm on the verge of remembering something, but anytime I get close to an answer, it slips away."  
The young woman with yellow eyes remained frustratingly silent. Yui turned to look at her, but the young woman looked ahead. Yui's burgundy eyes hardened.  
"I thought you were supposed to be helping me."  
Chula turned to Yui.  
"I'm sorry. But I can't help. I wish I could. I'm your protector, and I'm failing."  
Chula's expression melted from thoughtful to sorrowful. Yui's eyes softened. The woman next to her seemed deeply upset that she couldn't help.  
"I guess it's not your fault though. I guess this is just one puzzle that I'll have to solve myself."

* * *

"Hmm... Three attempts and no souls have been reaped? This is not the kind of results I was expecting, Rounder."  
Rounder keept his blue eyes locked with the small pebble he'd been staring at for what seemed like forever now.  
"I'm sorry, my King. The Pretty Cure-"  
"The Pretty Cure? What is that?!"  
Rounder gulped.  
"They're annoying pests that keep getting in the way. We'll take care of them. I promise."  
Rounder knew better than to look up. He could feel the King's eyes burning into the spot of his head that was facing the King. The Gambling King was silent for a few moments.  
"I hope you can live up to that promise, Rounder. Now go."  
Rounder hadn't realized he had held his breath while waiting for the King to speak. He closed his eyes, and stood.  
"Yes, Your Highness."

Rounder spun on his heel and left the throne room. When he exited, he found the magenta head of Swindla leaning up against a pillar in the hall.  
"Hmm... I was expecting you to come out looking worse. Though,"  
Swindla said, pushing off of the pillar.  
"Be careful not to get silver hairs, Rounder. That wouldn't look good with such a young face."  
Swindla teased. Rounder said nothing, but his expression was enough to silence Swindla.  
"Prepare yourself, Swindla."  
Rounder said, reaching into his vest and taking out a black, red and white card.  
"It's your turn, now. Cas hasn't returned from his attempt."  
Rounder finally faced Swindla.  
"Don't screw this up."  
Swindla took the card with a disinterest. She didn't say anything, but her red lips curved upwards as she disappeared in a flash of black flower petals.

* * *

Kichi and Audrey were sitting at Kichi's coffee table in Kichi's room, quietly doing their homework. Luckily for them, an Avari hadn't attacked them recently. Which also made them worry. What could those people be planning? Kichi thought, staring at her homework. The whole thing was still fairly new to her. How could it not be? She'd only become Cure Trump a little over a week ago. She was grateful for the fact that Audrey had the capacity to transform into a Pretty Cure Warrior. But then came the small green frog that was jumping up and down with the other two fairies on Kichi's bed.  
"Keroro?"  
Kichi started. The fairies stopped jumping and all looked at Kichi. Audrey looked up from her homework as well.  
"How are we supposed to find your partner? I think I got really lucky in Audrey. She found out about me, and wanted to help protect me... But I still wasn't sure how to find a partner before that happened."  
The fairies all were quiet, and Audrey opened her mouth, before closing it, unsure what to say to Kichi.  
"It is a good question~roro. But the only thing I can tell you is that I'll know who to pick as my partner when she presents herself in a moment of dire need. When she finally accepts the fact that she can protect anyone when she puts her mind to it. Kind of like how both you and Audrey reacted~roro."  
Kichi looked down at her homework. That would mean another Avari attack.  
"Well, I wouldn't worry about it too much, Kichi."  
Audrey said. Audrey had a small smile on her face, Razor flapping down onto her shoulder.  
"We made a promise to Keroro to find his partner. We'll start looking for Keroro's partner after school tomorrow. And if we don't find her, there's always Sunday."  
"But Madoka's basketball game is on Sunday!"

* * *

The school day came and went, and the girls went on a look for Keroro's partner. Madoka conveniently had more basketball practice, though the Audrey and Kichi had to act fast, as Madoka said the practice wasn't going to be a long one, and she'd meet them at Tea Card when she was done. Kichi took the group to the mall first.  
"Surely, someone worthy of being a Pretty Cure will be here at the mall."  
"I sure hope so~roro."  
The small green frog looked a little defeated, but Kichi was confident they'd find him his partner in no time. Unfortunately, the mall wasn't that exciting of a place, and the girls left, Audrey taking them to a small flea market not too far from Tea Card.  
"What if we never find her? Then it'll just be you two having to deal with Cure Poker. And she seems like a real... well... She's really difficult~roro."  
Kichi set Keroro down and knelt. She didn't like seeing the small frog fair look so sad.  
"Keroro,"  
She said.  
"We promised you that we'd find you your partner right? Well, I know for a fact that Audrey and I don't break promises. We'll find her. Just stay positive."

The girls continued to look around town for a girl fit to be a pretty cure warrior, but Keroro didn't feel anyone was right enough for his partner. The girls and the fairies were on the way home from Tea Card when Keroro finally perked up.  
"I think... I think my partner was at that café~roro!"  
Audrey and Kichi looked at one another. They exchanged glances, as if they were unsure how to process the information Keroro had just told them.  
"Well, that's great Keroro. I really hope we can find her again."  
Audrey said. She put her best smile on, trying to make Keroro know that they weren't giving up.  
"We'll start at Tea Card right after Madoka's basket ball game."

* * *

The morning of the basketball game arrived, and Kichi and Audrey were one of the first to get to the school's gym. Madoka was on the floor, warming up.  
"Hey! Audrey! Kichi!"  
Madoka said, running over to her friends.  
"So happy you two could make it to the game!"  
"We wouldn't miss this for the world, Madoka!"  
Kichi said.  
"Do your best today, Madoka! We'll be cheering for you!"  
Audrey said, smiling. Kichi high fived Madoka, before Madoka ran back on to the gym floor.  
"I... I think she's here~roro! I don't know where, exactly, but my partner is here, in the gym~roro!"  
Keroro cried. Luckily, not many people had showed up, and Kichi and Audrey didn't have to hide the fairies as much, but his outburst still took them off guard.  
"That's awesome, Keroro. But you've got to stay quieter than that! People are starting to come in."  
Keroro settled into the bag the girls had for the fairies, but he watched the floor with a determination in his eyes, ready to find his partner.  
"I wonder who she could be though."  
Audrey said, eyeing the small crowd in front of them. What if it was a girl from their school? What if it was a girl from the opposing school? Having a teammate from another school district would be a big problem for them. Audrey's eyes settled on the green head of Madoka. Her eyes narrowed. Surely it couldn't be a coincidence that Keroro felt his partner's presence the two times they were with Madoka. She turned to Kichi, and tapped her shoulder.  
"Kichi, I think I know who Keroro's partner might be."

* * *

Swindla walked into the gym, her human guise shielding her from the weird looks she had gotten a day prior.  
"The human's just don't appreciate good fashion sense."  
She scoffed under her breath, looking at all the people in the gym. A fair amount of people had come now, and the gym was beginning to get loud. The whole city was full of greedy people, but Swindla wanted to make sure she found a fresh, new greed. A greed for fame was perfect for her. And the gym was full of it, most of it coming from the stands, but Swindla's eyes landed on a young girl on the gym floor. She had a look on her fact that Swindla love seeing: overconfidence. Swindla smirked.  
"Perfect."

* * *

The game was getting heated, and the score was tied. Madoka stared down the girls from the opposite team, breathing hard. She brushed sweat off of her forehead. Just have to get this next shot, and I know we can turn this around, she thought. The screeching of shoes brought her back to reality. She ran to try and get the ball back in their position. As she ran, she only had eyes on the girl she was trailing. She didn't see the foot stick out in front of her. The next think Madoka new, she was tumbling to the floor, a pain shooting into her shoulder and arm as she hit the hardwood floor.  
"Hey! Are you going to call a foul?"  
Madoka shouted. She heard fans from her school start booing. But the ref didn't call anything. Madoka pushed herself to the floor, and caught her coach's eye. She was signaling for Madoka to come off the floor. She grudgingly made her way to the bench.  
"Did you see that coach?!"  
Madoka exclaimed. The coach tried to calm the girl, but Madoka was seeing nothing but red. Eventually, Madoka sat down on the bench, muttering under her breath.

"Don't give up, Madoka! You'll be able to turn this game around!"  
Kichi cheered. Madoka turned to see her blond friend. Yui had apparently joined them, but she smiled and gave a small nod to her friends.

* * *

Swindla had hung back, not taking a seat in the bleachers. She saw the girl trip Madoka and figured it was the best chance to move. She heard what the girl's greed was saying.  
"_Ha! We're totally going to win this game! No one will be able to beat us this year! We'll be undefeated!_"  
A time out was eventually called, and Swindla made her way to the opposing team. No one questioned her being over there. She casually slipped by, dropping the card into the girl's bag before hanging back behind the bleachers once more. She knew it would be a while before the girl would see the card, but Swindla liked to take her time.

Eventually, the girl decided to pull something out of her bag. She picked up the card, a puzzled look on her face. Swindla, from a distance, activated the card's dark magic.  
"AVARI! TAKE YOUR GREED AND FULFILL YOUR DESIRES!"  
She shouted. Instantly, black and red lights burst from the card, enveloping the girl in dark energy. When the light faded, an Avari made of a basketball basket headboard and arms that ended in basketballs appeared.  
"AVARI! No one will beat us! We'll be number one all year!"

* * *

People scattered, screaming at the monster that appeared as it began to stomp around, and destroy the gym. Kichi turned to Audrey, both girls nodding.  
"Oshio-san! Get somewh- Oshiro-san?"  
Kichi looked around, looking for the transfer student. She was no where to be found. Kichi hoped that the girl got to a safe place. She grabbed Darling, who was now in cellphone form. She ran towards the bathrooms, which was on the opposite side of the exits.  
"Ready, Audrey?"  
"Ready!"  
"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"

* * *

Madoka shot up from the bench, looking in horror at the monster that appeared out of nowhere.  
"Everyone, get to the ex-"  
She started, but everyone was already cleared out, for the most part. A strange woman with really pink hair made her way to the center of the floor. She was shouting something that sounded like "avari." Whatever that meant. It was then that Madoka thought of Kichi and Audrey. She spun around, and was relieved to see that her friends had managed to escape. Madoka tried to run off and follow everyone else, but her body seemed to be frozen in fear at the monster that was now destroying the gym.  
"What am I supposed to do now?"  
She looked around, wanting to find some sort of normalcy. She finally regained control of her body, and was about to run off before two girls, a flash of pink and blue, caught her eyes. They slammed right into the monster in front of her.

One had light pink pig tails, the other had almost white blue hair with a small pony tail that split in half at the top of her head. The rest of her hair reached about her thighs and had split in two parts like the pony tail on her head. The girls fought with a ferocity that Madoka had only seen in cartoons and little kids shows.  
"Wh-what are those girls?"  
It was then that the girl with the pink pigtails saw she was still in the gym.  
"Get to safety Maa-mmmma'am!"  
The girl with pink hair said. Madoka's brows furrowed. It almost sounded like she was about to say her name. Nevertheless, Madoka made for the exits. But the woman with the hot pink hair stood in front of her.  
"You're not going anyway, young lady."  
Madoka stopped running, and started backing away from the strange woman.

She couldn't find her voice. She had no idea what was going on. She heard screams behind her, turned to look and regretted doing so. The girl with the blue hair had been slammed into the wall, and the girl with pink pigtails was being flung around by the basket monster.  
"Cure Trump!"  
She called. Madoka took a small gasp. The voice sounded familiar to her. She then felt a cold, small hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw a small green frog, with an orange sash around his neck.  
"Madoka! You have to fight~roro! You're a Pretty Cure! They need your help! Trump and Royal need you~roro! I need you~roro!"  
"What? Are you a talking frog? What the hell is going on here?! Someone give me some answers!"  
"Later~roro!" The small frog said.

Madoka looked at the two girls still fighting the avari thing. The woman with pink hair wasn't doing anything, though she was shooting daggers at the frog. Madoka took notice of that and took the frog off her shoulder and held him in her arms.  
"You're not going to hurt him."  
"Well, that remains to be seen. But I'm afraid I can't let him do what I think he's about to do."  
The woman charged towards Madoka, and she knew she was in trouble now. Madoka sidestepped the woman, and ran in the opposite direction.  
"Give me some answers now, or I don't see a reason why I shouldn't give you to that crazy lady!"  
Madoka yelled. The frog began to say something, but she couldn't hear him. The monster began firing basket balls from its basketball hands, doing more damage to the gym. Madoka cursed under her breath. A flash of bright green stopped her in her tracks. A green card with a barcode on the side, with a green outline of a club appeared in front of her.

"A Pretty Cure Card~roro!"  
The frog yelled. Madoka was about to grab it before the woman with pink hair snatched it.  
"Well, without this, at least you can't transform."  
Too much was going on for Madoka. She couldn't make sense of the situation. The girl with pink pigtails appeared and started fighting with the woman.  
"Give Madoka her card back! She's meant to fight with us!"  
The girl's voice sounded familiar to Madoka as well.  
"Kichi?! Audrey?!"  
Madoka said, looking from the girl in pink to the girl in blue. They were her best friends, fighting some crazy monster. The strange woman let the card go, and it flitted down before landing on the avari monster. Madoka made a motion for it, but a flash of white appeared in front of her.

"I think you'll need this. Take it, and listen to the frog."  
Madoka stared into the pale pink eyes of the girl that appeared in front of her. She took the card and nodded. Keroro jumped out of Madoka's arms, and a puff of light green smoke later, he was in a cellphone form.  
"Use the card~roro! Slide it through the slit at the top and say 'Pretty Cure! Card Play'~roro!"  
Madoka looked at the card, then back at the talking cellphone. The girl in white had joined Kichi and Audrey in fighting the basketball monster.  
"Ha-how do you know this will work?" She said, her confidence wavering. The frog looked up at her, not letting her doubt feed her fear.  
"Because Trump-san and Royal-san believe in you~roro! I believe in you~roro! Now you just need to believe in you~roro!"  
Madoka went from looking at the card, the phone and the scene before her. For some reason, the three girls couldn't take down the monster. It was too quick, and it played dirty, like the girl it was born from.  
"_Trump Shot!_"  
"_Royal Breeze!_"  
"_Poker Barrage!_"  
The three girls fired their attacks, but the monster dodged all of them, and each attack ended up hitting the girls. Madoka grabbed Keroro and clutched the card hard. She looked up at the woman with hot pink hair, expecting the woman to stop her. Bu she was too involved with the fight to notice Madoka.

"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"  
Madoka slid the card through the slit at the top, the box on the track pad glowing. She traced an "S" on the pad. Her clothes had disappeared, and her body was glowing with a soft green light. Her bob cut hair glowed with energy and sprung upwards, curling into a bun. A ribbon attached itself at the bottom of the bun, tying everything together. She punched her hands outwards one at a time, arm warmers appearing on each arm with each punch. The light on her torso intensified, and an upper body piece appeared, along with a skirt. She made a club with her hands and brought her hands over her chest. A dark green club gem appeared on her chest, a lighter green bow appearing on the sides. She round house kicked, boots appearing on her legs. Keroro attached himself to her waist, and a small, light green ribbon appeared on her back side. Finally she struck a pose.

"The Defeating Ending Move! Cure Straight!"  
The light died down, and Cure Straight stared at everyone who in turn was staring at her. She wasn't quite sure what had happened, so she took a look at herself.  
"Did...Did I just...?"  
She couldn't finish her question. It all seemed too unreal, like a dream. However, she couldn't look at herself for too long as the basketball monster charged her way. Straight held her ground, readying herself. She pushed off one of her feet and charged towards the monster as well. She brought her fist back, and punched forward, hitting the monster square in the area where a stomach would have been. The monster flew backwards with a force that surprised Straight.  
"Whoa..."  
Trump and Royal ran over to her.  
"Wow! Madoka-san! You're... you're a Pretty Cure warrior!"  
Straight didn't have anything to say. And even if she did, Trump threw her arms around Straight's neck, hugging her tight.  
"Yes! We've got a complete team!"  
Trump said.

"AVARI! I'LL CRUSH ANYONE WHO STANDS IN MY WAY!"  
The avari managed to get back on its feet and ran for the girls, firing exploding basketballs. The girls scattered, and began attacking the avari from all directions.  
"Trump! We just need to stall! Straight can take care of this one!"  
Royal yelled. Trump shouted something in response, and the two lead the monster away from Straight.  
"Keroro, what they mean by me taking care of it?"  
"You'll have to be the one that purifies this monster~roro! You can do it, Straight~roro! I know you can~roro!"  
Straight watched her friends attack the monster. It was all up to her now. Keroro floated up towards her, the trackpad glowing. She made traced a golden cross on the screen.  
"_Experience my shuddering hand!_"  
She said, the words just flowing out of her mouth. Her hands were set ablaze with green fire.  
"_Straight Blaze!_"

Straight thrust her hands downward, the fire hitting the ground and snaking towards the avari. Once the green flames touched the monster, it was instantly engulfed. The fire began to glow, and after an explosion of green smoke, the girl from the other team was on the ground, unconscious. The card swayed back and forth as it was pulled down to the floor. When it touched the hardwood, it instantly turned to black ash.  
"You haven't seen the last of Swindla, Pretty Cure!"  
Swindla cursed. She vanished in a flurry of black petals. The three girls returned to their civilian forms.  
"Yay! Madoka! You were our last teammate!"  
The girls began to speak before noticing the White Warrior. The three went quiet.  
"Good job, Pretty Cure. You've managed to partner the three fairies from my homeland. I guess I should start to consider joi-"

Cure Poker lunged forward, clutching her stomach. Kichi shouted, and extended her arm, but Cure Poker began to glow with a blinding white light. When it faded, Yui was standing in her place. Kichi, Madoka and Audrey stood there, speechless.  
"Abe-san? Shinohara-san? Hattori-san? What happened? And why isn't the game going on?"


	5. Yui-san is a Pretty Cure?

"Abe-san? Shinohara-san? Hattori-san? What happened? And why isn't the game going on?"  
The three girls stared at Yui before huddling together.  
"She doesn't remember anything that just happened?"  
Kichi asked  
"Clearly not, Kichi. But it's weird. Why wouldn't she remember being Cure Poker?"  
Audrey said.  
"Girls, I'm still not even sure what's going on, or what just happened."  
Madoka said.  
"No time to explain, Madoka! There are more pressing issues at hand!"  
Kichi said.  
"Kichi!"  
"Sorry. We'll explain everything to you soon. We just need to figure this out."

The girls let go of one another and faced Yui. Any destruction made by the monster had disappeared, and people had started to filter back into the gym, their voices soft with murmurs. Kichi walked over to Yui and lead her back to Audrey and Madoka.  
"Um, everyone left for half-time."  
Kichi lied. Yui's brows furrowed.  
"But half-time was twenty minutes ago. The game should still be going on, should it not?"  
Kichi laughed nervously and looked at Audrey and Madoka for help. Kichi had to admit, for a girl who clearly couldn't remember the fact that she had another personality living inside of her (and also for not seeming to have a good grasp on human things), she apparently knew what half time was and that it just happened twenty minutes ago. The girls stammered for a few moments, only to realize Yui was not paying them any attention anymore.  
"Well, at least we know something about Oshiro-san. She's been a mystery ever since she transferred here."  
The fairies popped up out of the three girls' pockets.  
"I think it's time we took you to someone important~lingu."  
Darling said.

* * *

Madoka's team ended up winning the game after everything returned to normal. The team went to celebrate, but Madoka unfortunately had to leave them. The three fairies lead the girls to a park, while Kichi and Audrey filled Madoka in on what happened earlier that day.  
"So…what you're saying is that…we're like superheroes?"  
Madoka asked.  
"That's the best explanation I can think of. But we're cool warriors because we can kill-"  
Kichi started.  
"Purify~lingu."  
"Purify monsters without having to use mechas or whatever."  
Madoka was silent for a few moments. Kichi and Audrey exchanged worried looks, as if to say they were unsure that Madoka would want to stick with anything. But before they had a chance to get a response from Madoka, the three fairies stopped floating.

They had lead the girls to a secluded hill in the park.  
"I didn't know this hill existed. And I've been to this park since I was really young."  
Audrey said, her voice far away.  
"But this is where our mentor is~rayray! She'll help you guys understand Cure Poker. She's Poker's fairy partner~rayray. Just like we are to you~rayray."  
The girls looked around the hill. One sakura tree stood at the apex. But the hill was abandoned. The girls searched the hill, and a few feet around the hill, but couldn't find anyone or anything.  
"Are you three sure you lead us to the right place?"  
Madoka asked, the three girls walking up the hill to the tree.  
"Oh, I assure you girls, you're in the right place."  
Wind blew sakura petals through the air, and a slim figure rounded the tree. The three girls all looked at one another, baffled to see the young woman standing in front of them. The tree wasn't very thick; they would have seen her standing behind it. But not one of them could find their voices. Not even Kichi.

"Yes, I can help. But not much. I'll give you only the information necessary. The rest will be up to Cure Poker. I'm Chula, by the way."

* * *

The flutter of shuffling cards was the only thing that was heard for the longest time in the empty casino floor. A few more lights had turned on. One was shining over a roulette table, another over a bar, one over circular poker table, to name a few. Rounder stood behind the half circle table, shuffling his cards, his eyes closed as he did so. He could feel the tension from his three co-members. They were quiet, which was smart on their part. After what felt like shuffling his deck of cards a few hundred thousand times, Rounder began dealing two cards. Blackjack was his game. Sharp was twirling a poker chip in his fingers, Swindla was lazily spinning the roulette wheel, and Cas was at the bar, scarfing down more food. The three of them stopped what they were doing and focused on Rounder. Him dealing cards was never a good sign.  
"So,"  
His voice was sharp, harsh, and livid.  
"Not a single soul has been reaped for our King."  
However harsh his voice sounded, he had a conversational mood to what he was saying. He was calm. But he was angry. Never a good combination.

"I took out a warrior once before, like she was nothing."  
The three other members stayed quiet, and Rounder opened his piercingly blue eyes.  
"And you three idiots can't defeat them when they literally just got their powers. Better yet,"  
He said, his eyes now resting on Swindla.  
"One of you made an effort to keep one from transforming. And while it sounds good on paper, the execution was horribly flawed."  
Rounder let his anger get the better of him, and flipped his table over.  
"And like always, I'm the one that has to clean up the messes you three have left for me."

Rounder took a deep breath, and ran his fingers through his bright blue hair, keeping it slicked back as he liked it to be. He disappeared in a flash of blue/black light. The three other members of the Card Shark Quartet all looked at one another, feeling defeated. That much was known, though neither one of them would admit it. The three of them scattered.

* * *

"Chula? Should we know who you are, exactly?"  
Kichi said.  
"Kichi! Don't be so rude!"  
"Don't worry, Royal-san. It's quite okay. I can't expect you three to know who I am. Though I will say, I was just introducing myself."  
Chula said. She looked at the three girls. So much they didn't know. And so much she couldn't tell them.  
"First and foremost, I think it's obvious, but Cure Poker and I are not of this world."  
"I knew it!"  
"Kichi!"  
"What? It's not like this was something really super surprising. Yui-san acts like a lot of things are foreign to her. I would never say it out loud though, but it does make sense!"  
Audrey didn't say anything. It wasn't like she could argue with Kichi. Madoka chimed in.  
"So what happened, then? What are you doing on earth? Why are we superheroes?"  
Madoka asked.  
Chula was quiet. She was about to say something when she faltered, falling onto the side of the tree.

In a poof of white smoke, in place of the girl, a small, floating white mouse appeared.  
"Aaah. That form is really exhausting~de chu."  
Kichi, Audrey and Madoka should have been surprised, but the sudden appearance of the mouse was almost expected. The three fairy partners appeared, in their animal forms, and danced around Chula, obviously excited to see her in her natural form. Chula managed to calm them down before she spoke up again.  
"Well, I don't know if I can tell you. It seems like something Cure Poker should tell you~de chu."  
"But, how can we talk to her? We saw her fight today, and then become Yui! And she had no idea what she had done."  
"That's right. how can we expect to tai to her when we have no way of doing so? Oshio-san had no memory of fighting with us as Cure Poker this afternoon."  
Audrey said.  
The setting sun cast a long shadow along the small mouse's face.  
"You're right~de chu. Poker lost her memory coming to this world. But how that happened isn't important right now~de chu!"

The three girls looked confused. Why had they been brought here if they weren't going to get any answers. Kichi turned to Darling.  
"Darling, why did you bring us here if she can't tell us anything?"  
Darling looked down, quiet. It was almost as if she didn't have an answer.  
"You needed to know who Chula was, eventually~lingu!"  
She said. Kichi let out a sigh.  
"Because~de chu! Because…I need your help~de chu! I need your help to get Poker's memory back~de chu!"  
All three of the girls looked at Chula. It was obvious that she was desperate for help.  
Kichi was the first to speak up.  
"Okay, Chula. We'll help you."  
She said, giving the mouse a big smile.

* * *

Yui felt confused, and hurt. The way Kichi, Audrey and Madoka had looked at her during the game had more of a lasting effect on her than she thought. These girls had made a huge effort to become her friend, to familiarize her with the world around her that was so alien and foreign to her. But at the same time, she didn't understand why that was. She felt the need to go back to the hill in the park that had become her home. But she didn't want to go there. She had no desire to talk to the young woman that talked in riddles. She found herself wandering around the city, no real designation in her mind. Chula didn't really let her wander around the city. In fact, it was school, and then back to the hill. That mysterious hill where she had woken up just a few months ago. But it seemed like years to Yui.

Yui decided it was time to stop looking at her feet as she walked through the small city. Right across the street from her was the tea shop the girls had taken her once before. "Tea Card" the sign on the wall read in elegant, looping letters. When she was able to, Yui crossed the street and made her way into the café.  
"Welcome to Tea Card! How many are you expecting?"  
Came the melodious voice of Hoshiko.  
"Just-just me."  
Yui said. Hoshiko lead the girl to the table that Kichi always requested.  
"Hey… Aren't you Kichi's friend?"  
Yui nodded.  
"Well where are they? And why do you look so sad?"  
Yui shrugged at her first question. But the second question weighed down on her.  
"I'm not sure… We were at the basketball game today, and something weird happened a little after half time. The whole gym was empty, and Kichi, Audrey and Madoka were just looking at me like I had become a monster."

The café was empty, so Hoshiko took it upon herself to sit and talk with Yui. However, what she didn't realize was that she had left the front unmanned. And a boy with electric blue hair walked through the entrance.

* * *

Yui's tea had gone cold, and Hoshiko had been scolded back into working. However, her words did not fall on deaf ears. What Hoshiko had told Yui was still running through her mind.  
"_They're your friends, Yui. I'm sure whatever is going on isn't because of you. They don't think you're a monster either. I know for a fact Kichi would never think that way of you._"

Yui had asked how she knew that. Apparently, Hoshiko and Kichi had been next door neighbors growing up. The two girls knew each other well. Hoshiko's words had helped Yui feel a little better. But her sadness towards Kichi and the other's reaction to her standing on the basketball court changed to her sadness that something was missing. And something big. But she couldn't figure out what it was.

* * *

The boy with electric blue hair tipped his glasses down. Rounder smirked. He'd found his next target: the waitress girl running back and forth from the tables to the kitchen to the front. Apparently it wasn't her job to do the front, but their host had called in sick today. And she wasn't even getting some extra money for doing so. Greed for money was the easiest thing to pick out in humans. Rounder knew he could do better, but why bother? This girl was plenty angry as well. Rounder did, however, pick up on the fact that she kept shooting glances at the girl across the café from him. A sad looking girl with jet black hair sat at a table in the corner between two big windows, burgundy eyes staring at a cup of tea.

Rounder moved back to his target, but couldn't help but feel that the girl across the café felt very familiar to him. The girl stood and made her way towards the restrooms. The second she turned her back to him, he nearly spit out his tea. A faint mark that only he could see radiated dark blue light in the middle of the girl's back.  
"Cure Poker."  
He said through gritted teeth. The time to act on his target was now. He made his way over to Hoshiko, slipping the Avari card into her apron pocket. It wouldn't take long for the card's magic to activate. He'd already spoken the command to summon the monster. All it would take is a simple brush of her fingers against the card for the transformation to take place.

* * *

"But…there's got to be some way we can figure out how to get Poker's memory back. Do you have any ideas, Chula?"  
Madoka said.  
The girls and the fairies had been on the hill for quite sometime, and decided it was best to make their way back downtown, headed for Tea Card. Luckily, no one was paying them any attention, so their conversation seemed like it was taking place just between three girls, and not three girls and four fairies.  
"I've been thinking~de chu,"  
Chula started, making sure not to make any sudden movements as she rested in Kichi's arms. But the small white mouse hesitated before continuing.  
"Maybe you need to transform in front of her~de chu?"  
The girls all nodded in agreement, but they were still worn out from fighting the Avari that afternoon. The sun had finally gone down, but it wasn't quite dark just yet. Tones of red and orange blended into the inky blue black sky.  
"But she always transforms into her original self when an Avari is born. And it's instant~de chu."  
"There has to be a way for her to not transform~lingu."

Madoka and Audrey fired off ways to maybe prevent Yui's transformation right away, but Kichi was silent. Her own ideas were swirling around.  
"Does she have a Pretty Cure Card?"  
The blonde spoke up. Audrey and Madoka stopped talking as Kichi started talking.  
"I mean, it happened to each of us, those cards appearing in front of us before we transformed. Does Yui have one?"  
"No~de chu. She wouldn't have need for one, as a citizen of the Land of Cards~de chu."  
"But she isn't a citizen of the Land of Cards. Not anymore, at least."  
Kichi continued.  
"I mean, it makes sense doesn't it? If she gets her card, she'll be able to transform, and not have Poker completely take over."  
Audrey gasped.

"You're right Kichi! It's almost as if there's not a unity of the personalities inside one body. Poker comes out when she wants, and Yui has no control. But,"  
Audrey's voice trailed off.  
"There's no way to keep her from becoming Cure Poker when an Avari is born~rayray."  
Razor finished for her. The girls had made their way back to Tea Card, and as they arrived, a boy with bright blue hair and sunglasses brushed past them, followed by Hoshiko running out of the café, calling after him.

"Hey! You didn't pay for your tea, you jerk!"  
She yelled.  
"I already paid you! It's in your apron pocket."  
Hoshiko stopped walking, as did the boy. Confused, Hoshiko reached into her apron pocket and a flash of red black light burst from Hoshiko's body. A second later, a giant tea pot monster, with the signature "A" between two familiar glowing red eyes appeared.

"AVARI! I SHOULD BE GETTING PAID FOR ALL MY EXTRA WORK!"  
The people that were in the streets screamed and ran in the opposite direction of the tea pot monster. Darling, Razor and Keroro all poofed into their cellphone forms. Kichi, Audrey and Madoka took their cards out of their pockets, about to shout their phrase when another familiar figure appeared in a flash of white. Poker had already taken over.

"Hurry up and transform!"  
She commanded, clearly ignoring the fact that they were just about to do so.

"Pretty Cure!Card Play!"  
"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"  
"The Elegant Finishing Move! Cure Royal!"  
"The Defeating Ending Move! Cure Straight!"

"Ah, so the gang's all here."  
Rounder said, throwing off his sunglasses and his human disguise. The four Warriors all glared at him.  
"Geez! How many of there are you annoying guys?!"  
Trump yelled.  
"I'm Rounder. I'm the leader of the Card Shark Quartet. And the thief of your precious Poker's memory."  
Poker had charged forward as Rounder was talking. He was able to deflect her moves with ease.  
"Looks like the White Warrior is all riled up!"  
Rounder jeered, black blue energy appearing in his hands. He thrust his open palms forward into Poker's stomach, sending her flying backwards into the arms of her three fellow Warriors.  
"Let the fun begin! Avari! Destroy the Pretty Cure Warriors!"  
The tea pot monster ran towards the four girls, blistering steam erupting from the monster's spout.

The four girls scattered as the teapot monster rampaged towards them. Rounder kept his eyes on the White Warrior as she dodged blasts of steam. He charged for her. Cure Poker was facing the Avari when he slammed into her back. She was forced forward, and fell to her side, rolling a few feet once she hit the ground. Pain lanced up and down her back; she could feel the magic Rounder had used on her when attacked her the very first time she saw him. It was what was forcing her memories as Cure Poker to stay with Poker only. She struggled to get up, but once she was on her feet, she looked back at Trump, Royal and Straight. They were taking care of the Avari as needed. They would take care of it. The way Rounder was staring down Poker told her that he was not letting her interfere.  
"We have some unfinished business, Cure Poker."  
Rounder said, running a hand through his already slicked back hair.

"You disappeared before I had a chance to destroy you, back in the Land of Cards."  
Poker said nothing. She had to figure out a way to get rid of him and help the three other warriors with the Avari.  
"I'm sorry I ruined your fun, then. I'm sure taking advantage of people when they aren't paying you any attention gives you great pleasure."  
Poker's back was still burning with pain, but she put on a brave face and stared down Rounder. She wasn't going to let him win a second time.

* * *

While Poker dealt with the new Card Shark member, Trump, Royal and Straight had to figure out how to take down a monstrous tea pot. The blasts of hot steam melted cars that lined the streets, left puddles when cooled down, and caused serious burns on the three girls. Getting close to the monster was difficult. And each girl had to get a clear shot at the monster if they wanted to purify it. The girls did their best to punch and kick the monster in various areas. But kicking and punching wasn't going to be enough.

After what seemed like hours, Trump came up with a plan. She called the other two girls over.  
"Royal! Straight! I've got a plan!"  
The green and blue girls made their way over to Trump, who was hiding down an alley, leaving the Avari momentarily confused as to where its targets were.  
"Okay. It's a tea pot, right?"  
Trump asked, wiping sweat off her face.  
"And as crazy as a monster tea pot is, I think it's probably even crazier to expect that it has actual tea inside of it. So if I'm right, here's what we're going to do. Straight, you're going to get underneath it, and set a big fire underneath it. That'll cause it to steam even if it doesn't want to."  
Straight nodded.  
"And then Royal, once you think it's steamed up the street enough, blow all the steam away. But let it build up a little, that way it won't see us."  
"And after I blow the steam away, you'll take it out!"  
Royal finished for her. Trump nodded enthusiastically.  
"Sounds like a plan to me."

Straight was the first to run out of the alley. The teapot saw her right away, and charged right for Straight.  
"_Experience my shuddering hand! Straight Blaze!_"

Straight yelled, bright green fire appearing in her hands. She thrust her hands down, the fire striking the asphalt, and snaking its way towards the Avari. Once beneath it, the flames burst upwards, striking the underside of the teapot. Within seconds, steam began pouring out of the spout, the Avari confused. The fire seemed to immobilize the monster, which was good for the Cures. Steam began to flood the street, and soon, it was too hazy to see anything. The fire died down, and the Avari was able to move again. It cautiously turned around.  
"_Witness my sparkling strategy! Royal Breeze!_"  
The steam cleared with wisps of blue energy. Standing directly in front of the teapot was Cure Trump, her hands formed into her signature hand gun.  
"_I'll show you my trump card! Trump Shot!_"

The pink bullet of energy flew from Trump's extended fingertips and shot right through the center of the monster. The Avari glowed with pink energy and exploded with pink smoke. Hoshiko was lying on the ground, unconscious and the Avari card burned to ashes the second it touched the ground. A light from the inky black sky above restored the street to its former state.  
"Royal! Straight! Take care of Hoshiko-senpai!"  
Trump yelled, turning around to see where Poker was.

* * *

Poker was breathing hard. Rounder was too strong for her. She heard an explosion behind her and turned her head over her shoulder. The Avari was defeated. She had mere seconds before she became Yui again. Trump was standing in front of her before she knew it. She looked up at the girl in pink.  
"If you're doing to do anything else to her, you'll have to go through me to do it!"  
Trump yelled. Rounder eyed her, contemplating his next move.  
"Ah. You've gone and purified my Avari."  
He said, almost happy about the outcome.  
"I think I've had my fun. She's too weak to take me on anyway. Killing her like this wouldn't be that fun."  
Rounder disappeared in a flash of dark blue light.

Poker lurched forward, the pain of Rounder's magic taking over her once again. Trump grabbed her shoulders, and she looked into the girl's golden eyes.  
"Don't worry, Poker. We'll get Yui your memories back. It's a promise."  
"Thank y-"  
She couldn't finish. A flash of white light later, and Poker was gone. Yui found herself looking at a strange girl with pink ponytails and gold eyes. The girl excused herself, and ran off. Yui turned to follow her. Two other girls, one dressed in blue, another in green ran with the girl in pink into an alley. Seconds later, Kichi, Audrey and Madoka walked out of the same alley.

"What is going on here?"  
Yui thought.


	6. Find Yui a Club To Call Her Own!

"AVARRIII!"  
The monster stomped around the amusement park, people scattering and screaming.  
"Begin the risky game! Poker Barrage!"  
Cure Poker's attack was fired at the monster, hitting it square in the big red A in between its eyes. It glowed with a white light and exploded in a fury of white smoke. The smoke cleared, and a teenage boy lay on the ground, the Avari card burning to ash when it hit the concrete. Cures Trump, Royal and Straight ran up to Cure Poker, the three of them out of breath. Poker had her back to them, but she knew they were there. Her brows furrowed and she spun on them.  
"Where were you three?"  
Her voice was sharp, but her anger tame. The three girls looked up at their senior cure.

"We got caught up trying to get here. We're sorry."  
"Sorry won't cut it when your whole town is taken over by these things! Get here faster next time!"  
Cure Poker was close to shouting at them. But her usual detransformation quickly took hold of her. But before she could become Yui once again, Trump spoke up.  
"Wait! Cure Poker!"  
The light coming from Cure Poker's body faded. She stood upright, her hard eyes set on Cure Trump.  
"What else could you possibly want to say?"  
But Trump, nor her teammates, could speak. The simple act of saying her name stopped her transformation process.  
"Well?"  
The three girls stammered, but the white light returned, and Cure Poker was Yui once more. Trump looked at Royal and Straight. The other two were reflecting her look of shock. Trump regained her composure. This was going on for too long. There had to be a way to get Yui to regain her memories.

* * *

A few days had passed. Yui found herself looking at the orangey pink sky as the sun set. She was lying on her back under the tree where she and Chula "lived." No one seemed to question them for living in the park. In fact, no one seemed to notice them at this specific tree. Yui closed her eyes, her thoughts running at a million miles a minute.

"Chula?"  
There was no answer, but Yui knew Chula was listening.  
"Where do I belong?"  
Chula remained quite for a while.  
"What do you mean?"  
"I mean… I feel like I don't belong in this world. That there's nothing for me here. But… I have nowhere else to turn."

"Nonsense, Yui."  
Yui opened her eyes. She felt her eyes grow wet. She blinked the tears away. She refused to cry.  
"No it's not. No one seems to know how to act around me. And I think I have some friends… But every time they look at me, they look at me with this pity in their eyes. Like they don't know what to say to me."  
Chula was quiet. Yui rubbed her eyes free of the remaining tears.  
"Are you talking about Kichi and the others?"  
Just the name Kichi made Yui want to cry. She felt like she had a genuine friend in the girl, but there was a distance between them. And Yui wasn't sure how to bridge it.  
"They are your friends Yui. I know it doesn't seem like it right now. But they care for you. They look at you with concern, not pity."

"Concern for what?"

Yui's words sounded bitter, but she didn't care.  
"Believe me when I say you wouldn't believe me, Yui. But they care for you. And you have a place in this world. You just have to find it. And I believe those girls can help you."

* * *

"Well, girls, if you're wondering why I've called you to my house, I'll tell you."  
"Kichi, we know why we're here. You told us when you texted us."  
Audrey said.  
"We are here to help Yui get her memories as Cure Poker back!"  
Kichi exclaimed, thrusting her index finger into the air. Madoka and Audrey put their heads in their hands.  
"But how, Kichi? I mean, we really don't have much to go on."  
Madoka said.  
"Well… Not necessarily. Remember earlier today when Cure Poker began to revert back to Yui, and Kichi called for her? That stopped whatever magic was working on her."  
Audrey noted.  
"Oh yeah…"  
The girls were quiet for a moment, thinking of something else to say about the situation.  
"What if it's got something to do about finding herself? Or maybe a place where she can be herself?"  
Audrey asked, breaking the silence.

Kichi ran her fingers across her chin, a pensive look on her face.  
"I'VE GOT IT!"  
Kichi shouted, jumping up to her feet, almost knocking the table they were sitting at over.  
"We've got to get Yui-chan into a club!"

* * *

The next morning, students filed in for class as usual. Kichi had arrived so early that she was the first one in her seat while other students were walking through the front gates. Audrey and Madoka entered the classroom, looks of shock on their faces when they saw Kichi in her desk, head down.  
"Wow…She's here so early. Good morning Kichi!"  
Audrey said, walking over to her desk next to Kichi's.  
"I doubt we'll ever see her this early for class ever again."  
Madoka said, sitting down in front of Kichi.  
"Yeah… Kichi, what are you doing here so early?"  
Kichi, however, gave no response, her head still resting on her folded arms on the desk.  
"Kichi…?"  
Audrey said, softly nudging Kichi's shoulder. A loud snore emitted from Kichi's bent over figure.  
"Of course she's asleep."  
Madoka said, putting a hand over her face.

"Kichi! Wake UP!"  
Audrey exclaimed. Kichi's eyes slowly opened. She sat upright in her chair, rubbing her eyes. She took her red glasses out from her bag and placed them on her face, right as Yui walked in the classroom door.  
"Yui-chann~! Good morning~!"  
Yui gave a start; Kichi's voice had cut through the morning murmurs loud and clear. Yui's face hardened, and she made her way to her seat, which was in front of Audrey.  
"Good morning, Abe-san."  
Yui's voice had an edge to it, but her face had softened a little.  
"Yui! Get ready for some fun today! Because I'm going to make sure you get into a club today!"  
"A club?"

* * *

The day went by rather horribly for the Yui. The swim team was too full, the fencing team found Yui too aggressive (though Yui wasn't sure why she was so aggressive to begin with), she didn't know how to write poetry, she didn't understand the rules of basketball, and she was too flat and monotone for the Drama Club.  
"Man, there's got to be something at school for you, Yui!"  
"Hey, Abe-san, really, thank you but-"  
"Call me Kichi, for the hundredth time!"  
Yui bit her lip. She did treasure Kichi as a friend, but despite Kichi's best efforts, she wasn't finding a place she could call her own.  
"Kichi… I just don't think there's a club for me here. Thank you, but…"  
Madoka put her hand on Yui's shoulder.

"Yui-san. Didn't you learn from the basketball team not to give up? Didn't you see those girls practicing their hearts out?"  
"Yes, but-  
"And we at the poetry club told you that when you hit a wall, you just have to push through it and your best writing will come through!"  
Audrey chimed in.  
"The show must go on!"  
Kichi said joyfully. Yui, however, shut her eyes. She could feel the hot tears pooling beneath her lids.

"STOP!"

Yui shouted. The three girls fell quiet, and Yui opened her eyes, the tears threatening to spill over her bottom lids. She wiped them away before they had a chance.  
She took a deep breath.  
"Thank you, really. I'm glad you're all trying to help me, but… Nothing's sticking with me. I'm sorry. There's not a club for me at this school."  
"You're right, Oshio-san. We shouldn't have tried to force you into any of the clubs. I'm sorry. We're sorry."  
Audrey said.  
Madoka nodded in agreement. Kichi was about to protest, but Audrey shook her head. Kichi closed her mouth, wanting to say something.  
"Just don't give up."  
She said finally.

Yui looked into Kichi's eyes, and nodded. It was a very small movement, but it was a nod nonetheless.  
"Hey… Can I ask a question?"  
"Of course, Yui-san. Ask us anything!"  
Audrey said.  
Yui was quiet for a few seconds, but the girls, having just learned how fragile Yui truly was, kept quiet patiently.  
"Does…does the name 'Cure Poker' mean anything to you?"  
The three girls exchanged panicked looks.  
"Uuuhhh, where-where did you hear that name, Yui?"  
"We certainly haven't heard that name before! Ha… Haha.. Hahaha!"  
"Gosh, Kichi. For being an actress, you're a terrible liar."

For the first time that day, a smile spread on Yui's face. And a laugh erupted from her mouth. The three girls stopped their worrying for a moment to take in Yui's reaction. Her small laughter resided.  
"I'm sure the name means nothing but… It's been popping up in my dreams the past couple nights. A name keeps calling 'Cure Poker', and I think it's talking to me. But, it's just a dream. Like I said, I'm sure it means nothing."

* * *

"Aaah. No one's signing up for my chess team."  
A boy from Yugaki, Iori, said.  
Rounder had been stalking the school grounds as a student. When he passed by the boy saying this, he smirked. He took out an Avari card and slipped it into the boys pocket.  
"Use this card, and you'll be able to get all your members."  
He whispered before walking off. Iori took out the card and examined it.  
"Hey, I think you…"  
Iori's voice trailed off. Rounder was nowhere to be seen.

"You said you've been having this dream for the past couple of nights, Yui?"  
Madoka asked, the girls walking through the courtyard of the school.  
"Yeah. It's weird. I'm standing in this big courtyard. I think it's for a castle. Anyway… I hear this 'Cure Poker' name. And I'm spinning around, trying to find where the voice is coming from. It's weird, because… It sounds like my voice. And this courtyard I'm standing in looks really familiar… Oh. I'm sorry. You probably don't want to hear about my dreams."  
Yui said, red coloring her face.  
"Don't be silly, Yui! Sometimes you need to speak dreams out loud in order to fully understand them. That's what my mom says sometimes."  
"Your…mom…"  
Yui's happy expression saddened a bit. She couldn't remember if she had any parents. The closest thing she had to a parent was Chula. And Chula wouldn't give her much information about anything. She always claimed Yui wouldn't believe it.  
"So, Yui,"  
Audrey said, trying to change the subject.  
"We're headed to my house to do some homework. Would you like to join us?"

* * *

"Please!"  
Iori cried, shoving fliers into student's faces.  
"Join the Chess Team!"  
Student's walked in front of Iori, ignoring his cries. Some took the fliers, looked at them, walked away and threw the flier in the trash. A few bullies came over and took the fliers and crumpled them up and threw them at him.  
"I should just give up. No one's going to join this team."  
Iori set his fliers on the ground, only for a breeze to pick up and blow most of them away.  
"Noo! My fliers!"  
Iori hung his head of light brown hair. His green eyes closed, and he sighed.  
"Oh, wait a minute…"  
Iori pulled the playing card out of his pocket. The mysterious student still was nowhere to be found, but his promise rung in Iori's ears.  
'_Use this card, and you'll be able to get all your members._'

Iori's hands clutched the card harder.  
"I want to gain members!"  
The card flashed a red/black light, which consumed Iori. When the light subsided, a giant white and black knight made of chess pieces stood in his place.  
"AVARI! I'LL GAIN ALL THE MEMBERS FOR THE CHESS CLUB!"

* * *

The girls had just rounded the corner from the front gate into the now empty courtyard, all laughing and talking when suddenly, Yui jerked forward, clutching her stomach, glowing with light white. Kichi, Madoka and Audrey heard screams coming from behind them, and soon, the roar of the Avari. Kichi looked at Yui, her transformation was taking a bit longer than it usually did. She had to act fast.  
"Yui!"  
Yui stopped glowing, and the look of pain faded from her face. Kichi grabbed her hand and ran backwards, towards the school courtyard, Madoka and Audrey following her. When the girls entered the courtyard, much of it was full of craters. The chess knight was stomping and slicing things apart. Yui's hand felt hot in Kichi's hand once again. She turned and saw Yui beginning to become Cure Poker once more.  
"Yui! I'm not letting you become Cure Poker without you getting your memories back! Yui! Please, stay with me! Stay Yui for just a little longer!"  
The white light faded, and Yui's burgundy eyes stared back at Kichi's brown. She nodded, though it was obvious she had no idea what Kichi was talking about.  
"Audrey! Madoka! Let's transform!"

"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"  
"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"  
"The Elegant Finishing Move! Cure Royal!"  
"The Defeating Ending Move! Cure Straight!"  
Yui stared at the three Cure Warriors in front of her, eyes full of wonder.  
"Pretty... Cure…?"  
Pain racked Yui's body as the seal on her back began to glow with blue lightning.

"Ah. Pretty Cure! How nice of you to show!"  
"Rounder!"  
"Hmm? Only three of you? Where's the White Warrior?"  
"That's not important! What's important is that we can't have you terrorizing the school! Girls! Let's go!"  
Trump said.  
The three warriors jumped in action and began attacking the chess Avari. Yui continued to look on. Chula suddenly appeared next to her.  
"Ch-Chula?"  
"Stay strong, Yui."  
Memories began to flood Yui's mind. Her running through halls in a white castle.

"Pretty Cure Triple Kick!"  
Trump, Royal and Straight all thrust a leg forward as they kicked the monster in unison. It staggered a bit, but the kick only angered it. Rounder threw his head back in laughter as the chess monster charged at the three girls, sending them flying backwards. Yui cried both in concern and pain. The seal on her back surged with more blue electricity.  
"Yui!"  
Trump called. Yui looked up, something inside her was desperate to get out. But every time someone said her name, whatever was inside of her subsided. More memories continued to pop into Yui's mind. A face with kind, soft, rose red eyes of a woman with rosy red hair was looking at her, smiling.  
"I've had enough of being punched around! _Experience my shuddering hand! Straight Blaze!_"  
Cure Straight's hands were set ablaze with bright green fire. She punch downward at the ground, the fire snaking towards the chess monster. The chess monster waved his hand forcefully, sending gale force winds, extinguishing the fire.

The monster took three orbs off of his shoulder piece and flung them at the warriors. Each one elongated into a cylinder and wrapped itself tight around the three girls. Yui couldn't watch, and whatever was inside of her began fighting again, itching to get out.  
'_No. Kichi told me to stay with her. I have to stay. I have to. For Kichi. For Audrey and Madoka, too._'  
"YUI!"  
"Yui-san!"  
"Yui!"  
"Please! Remember!"

Something snapped in Yui. The electricity stopped, and the seal glowed brightly before disappearing in a "ping!" of white light. Yui stood up tall, her burgundy eyes burning with passion. Rounder stopped laughing as he realized Cure Poker was hiding all along. He had to stop her once again.  
"Avari! Get her! Stop her!"  
The chess monster turned in Yui's direction and prepared a sword.

A flash of white appeared in front of Yui, a card with a glimmering silvery grey diamond in the center with a barcode on the side in the same color appeared.  
"Chula."  
"Yes~de chu!"  
Chula said, turning into her cellphone form.  
"Let's do this. Pretty Cure! Card Play!"

Yui slid her Pretty Cure Card through the slit on top of Chula's cellphone form. The trackpad glowed, and she traced a "P" onto the screen. She was surrounded by silver and white light. Her dark hair glowed with white light formed into a puffy side pony tail on the left side of her head. A big grey and silver bow pinged into existence to tie her hair up, a white diamond in the middle of the bow. Grey energy in the form of six large petals circled around her waist, before her skirt and torso appeared. She spun around, arm warmers pinging into place. She made a diamond shape with her index fingers and thumbs, and placed it on her chest. A pale pink ribbon appeared with a white diamond in the middle. She kicked her feet together, two boots with a pale pink diamond pattern appearing. She spun around once more, Chula attaching herself to Poker's waist. Lastly, a large, transparent ribbon appeared on the back of her waist, the ribbon ends reaching to her knees. She struck a pose.  
"The Risky Beginning Move! Cure Poker!"

"Cure Poker!"  
Trump exclaimed.  
"She managed to transform without Poker taking over!"  
Royal said joyfully.  
"That's really great and all, but we're still stuck in these balls! Poker! Can you help us?"  
Straight shouted. Cure Poker turned and smiled to her three comrades. She charged for them, striking the white balls trapping the other three.  
"Thank you! Now that we can move, let's take this thing down!"

The three other girls nodded in agreement with Straight, each one charging for the chess monster. the chess monster was prepared for them, however, matching each punch and kick made at it. It sent another round of wind to stall the warriors. It raised its blade, the sword glowing with red energy. The Avari brought its sword down, a blade of black/red energy was flung from the blade in the direction of the Pretty Cure. Poker was the first to recover from being blown backwards. She ran up to the energy blade and kicked it skyward.

"It's going to take a lot more than wind to catch us off guard!"  
She turned back to her teammates.  
"Trump! Royal! Straight! Let's all take it down together!"  
The four fairies, in their cellphone forms, all floated in front of their respective Cure. The trackpad lit up, and the four girls traced the familiar gold cross.  
"_I'll show you my trump card! Trump Shot!_"  
"_Witness my sparkling strategy! Royal Breeze!_"  
"_Experience my shuddering hand! Straight Blaze!_"  
"_Begin the risky game! Poker Barrage!_"  
The four attacks all flew at the Avari at the same time, hitting it square in the chest. In an explosion of multicolored smoke, the monster disappeared. Iori was seen on the ground unconscious, and the Avari card burned to ashes the second it touched the ground.  
"Well. I have to admit, Cure Poker. I never thought that you'd be able to get out of that seal. But it doesn't matter. The Gambling King has got a plan to bring this world to devastation just like your pathetic Land of Cards."  
Rounder then disappeared in a flash of blue lightning.

"Kichi. Audrey. Madoka."  
Cure Poker said, her back to the three other warriors. She couldn't look at them. Not yet. She was too emotional at the moment.  
"I just… I-I just want to thank you. For everything."  
Cure Poker spun around and put her arms around the other three warriors.  
"It's what friends are for, Yui."  
A large smile broke on Poker's face as she tightened her arms around the other girls.

* * *

"Iori-kun? Are you okay?"  
Kichi said, nudging the unconscious boy. His eyes flickered open, and he sat up, putting his head in his hands.  
"I think so, Abe-san. Ah! My fliers!"  
Iori got on his knees and began picking up the fliers that the wind had blown away. Kichi and the others also helped him pick up his fliers.  
"So at the end of the day, no one joined my team…"  
Iori said, his voice full of disappointment. Kichi eyed Iori, then turned back to Yui.  
"Iori-kun, do you have a chess set with you?"  
Iori looked up at Kichi and nodded. He lead the girls back inside the school and to his shoebox. He told them that he always had a chess set with him.  
"Well, I think I have a solution to your problems! Yui!"  
Kichi said, clasping her hands around Yui's shoulders.  
"Do you know how to play chess?"  
Yui eyed the game pieces, then Kichi.

"Um… No."  
"Ah! Oshiro-san! Everyone should know how to play chess! Here, let me show you how!"

After a brief explanation, and two games (both of which Yui won) Yui was calling for a third game.  
"Come on, Iori-san! Let's play another!"  
"But, it's getting late, Yui-san! Let's go home! But… If you really want to play more, will you join my chess team?!"  
"OF COURSE!"  
Yui shouted.  
"It's like you said! Everyone should know how to play this game!"


	7. The Tale of the Land of Cards!

The throne room was quiet. The King had summoned the Card Shark Quartet, and the four generals knelt before him, not daring to look up. The Gambling King sat lazily across his throne, his arm propped up on one chair arm, his legs dangling over the other arm. He twirled an Avari card in his fingers. His pale skin glowed in the spotlight that was above him. His tussled, dark red hair covered one eye. He had a simple black outfit on that almost looked like a boy's school uniform. On his head rested an extravagant, black silver and ruby crown.  
"Well,"  
The King started.  
"You haven't failed me yet. After all, you've each only fought the Pretty Cure warriors once or twice so far.

The Quartet said nothing still, but their tense bodies seemed to ease. The King's voice was even, and seemed almost casual in tone.  
"However, I was hoping to have at least one soul by now. We've been scouting Earth for too long. But those pesky Pretty Cure Warriors keep making it impossible to take it over completely."  
The King stopped fiddling with the card in his elegant fingers. He swung his legs over the arm of the throne and sat upright.  
"So today, forget about trying to find souls. Take on the Pretty Cure Warriors head on."

* * *

Episode 7: "The Tale of the Land of Cards! Yui's Sad Memories!"

* * *

Kichi, Audrey and Madoka all arrived at the park, as per Yui and Chula's instructions. They arrived at the hill they had first met Chula. But instead of the single cherry blossom tree, a shop had sprung up. Even more interesting was the fact that people were actually taking notice of the shop and entering it.  
"People can see this hill now?"  
Kichi asked.  
Audrey and Madoka shrugged in answer. The three girls walked up the hill into the shop. There were no signs in the front to tell them what kind of shop it was, but a sweet, baked scent could be smelled, as the girls got closer to the shop. When they entered, they were met with:

"Welcome! Please enjoy these card cookies!"

Yui was standing behind a register, taking orders and welcoming customers as they entered the shop.  
It wasn't terribly busy, but the shop was getting some action. There were cookie displays almost everywhere. Some where built into the walls, some were delicately placed on towers on tables in the middle of the main floor.  
"Wow. It smells wonderful in here!"  
Audrey said.  
"It really does."  
Madoka agreed.  
"I just want to eat nothing but cookies now!"  
Kichi exclaimed, running up to Yui.  
"Yui! We're here! Just liked you and Chula asked!"  
Kichi said.

Chula's head popped out from behind Yui, her face covered in flour.  
"Kichi! Audrey! Madoka!"  
Chula dusted the flour off her hands and walked into the main floor of the shop.  
"Yui, time to close up."  
"Excuse me, thank you for your service, but the shop will have to close now. You've made our opening day a success. We are forever in your debt."  
Yui said, making her way to the door and opening it for the customers. There were murmurs of 'Darn, we'll have to leave' and 'Why do they have to close?' or 'There were no signs out front, how were we supposed to know when the shop would close?'

Within five minutes, the store was completely empty. Kichi, Audrey and Madoka all looked at Yui and Chula, amazed at what they had done.  
"How?"  
Kichi asked, the word simply flying out.  
Yui and Chula looked at one another and smiled.  
"Well, we very well couldn't live under a tree for the rest of our time here in the Human World. It was Chula's idea."  
Yui said.  
"Apparently she used to work with bakers before she decided she wanted to become a Pretty Cure fairy partner."

Chula had reverted back to her mouse form, and was hanging off of Yui's shoulder. She nodded with a smile as Yui spoke.  
"Yes~de chu! We needed a cover, and I knew how to bake~de chu!"  
"That's our Chula-sama~lingu!"  
Darling chimed in, the three other fairies changing from their cellphone forms.

* * *

A table had been brought out, tea had been made, and the four girls sat at the table quietly. Kichi was the one to break the silence.  
"So, Yui. Chula. What is it you wanted to talk to us about?"  
"Surely it couldn't have been just to tell us you opened a cookie shop."  
Audrey said, nibbling on one of Chula's cookies.  
"Oh my! These really are so delicious Chula!"  
She mused.

Chula smiled in thanks, and answered.  
"Well, as you know, Yui and I come from the Land of Cards~de chu. So, we decided it's time that you three know the true story of what happened and how we came to be here in the Human World~de chu."

"Wait."

Chula and Yui were about to start speaking before Madoka told them to wait.  
"Just one thing before you get started with this story."  
Everyone was quiet. Madoka took a deep breath.  
"I love that we're able to help people. Really I do. But…I still really don't have an answer to something just yet."  
"What is it, Madoka~roro?"  
Keroro hopped on top of Madoka's green head.  
"Why us? Why are we Pretty Cure Warriors? Were we warriors in a past life or something? Were we born into this world having already been selected to become Pretty Cure Warriors?"

Chula and Yui both looked deep in thought, trying to think carefully about how to answer Madoka's question.  
"A Pretty Cure Warrior is not a reincarnated warrior from the past, nor is she someone who is chosen before her birth to become a warrior."  
Yui said, a small smile on her face, looking down at her tea.  
"Any girl can become a Pretty Cure Warrior. The only requirement is that she has a will to protect something precious to her. As long as a girl has that will to protect, she can become a Pretty Cure Warrior."

"Anyone can become a Pretty Cure Warrior…"  
Kichi said softly.  
"Kind of puts things in perspective a little."  
Audrey said.  
"Actually. A lot of Warriors are born from this planet~rayray!"  
Razor said, flapping his wings as he circled above Audrey's head.  
"You mean…there are more Pretty Cure Warriors than just us?"  
"Of course~lingu!"

Yui took a sip of her tea. She looked at Chula and nodded.  
"Let me tell you the story of how I became a Pretty Cure Warrior."

* * *

_Flashback_

Poker, aged eleven, walks around a large market, stalls set up all around her, a small coin purse in her hands. She wore a simple white dress, and her hair was pulled into a similar ponytail as her future Cure form, a pale ribbon holding it in place. She and her mother were shopping in the produce area. Vibrantly colored fruits and vegetables were on Poker's left, while light brown, delicious smelling bread was being sold on her right.  
"Momma!"  
Poker called, running up to her mother.  
"Ah, Poker. Have you found anything good to buy?"  
"Not yet, Momma. But I did hear that the King is in the Plaza today!"

As Poker said it, a loud fanfare was heard behind her and her mother. They both turned to see an older man dressed in royal clothing. Two older girls stood by him. One had golden hair pulled back into a ponytail and was dressed in an outfit with red, yellow and white. The second had purple hair that was also in a ponytail, and was dressed in an outfit of purple and white.  
"Momma! Look! The Pretty Cure Warriors! Momma? One day, I want to be a Pretty Cure!"  
"Poker, you know that citizens of the Land of Cards never get selected to become Pretty Cure Warriors."

Poker's large smile became smaller, and her face became less bright.  
"I know, but…"  
Poker's mother picked up on the effect her words had on her daughter.  
"But if you keep dreaming, Poker, maybe one day you'll be the first citizen to become a Pretty Cure Warrior."

Weeks passed, and an announcement was made that the King was stepping down. He was getting old, and he had found a suitable successor. The two pretty Cure Warriors that protected the Land of Cards were no longer protecting the Land. One was stripped of her title, and sent back to Earth. The other just went… missing. Queen Rei was announced to be the King's successor, though no one knew where she came from. The King was the first king in a very long time to never marry, so he had no heirs by blood. Poker looked up to the Queen. She ruled the Land of Cards with a kind heart.

A few days after the Queen's coronation, Poker was out in the woods, collecting flowers. Her mother had asked her to collect them. It was something Poker always loved to do. While she was doing so, she heard a rustling behind her. A small rabbit ran out in front of her.  
"What's wrong, Mr. Rabbit?"  
Poker said, picking the animal up in her arms.

Now facing the bush, Poker noticed it was starting to rustle again. A young teenaged boy ran out of the bush, his electric blue hair wild and his pale blue eyes piercing.  
"Give me that rabbit!"  
He shouted.  
Poker looked down at the rabbit in her arms. She clutched it a bit tighter.  
"Why?!"  
She demanded.

"Because! I need that rabbit to make sure my family has dinner!"  
Poker's eyes hardened, her brows furrowed. She wasn't about to let this boy have the rabbit.  
"You can just go buy something in the market plaza!"  
The boy said nothing, but looked down, his expression looked almost hurt. He was quiet for a few moments.  
"I need that rabbit for dinner!"  
"I won't let you have him!"  
Poker cried.

The boy, now frustrated, was about to speak when someone else called for him.  
"Rounder! Come help us! We found a deer!"  
The boy, now named Rounder, looked back at Poker.  
"Consider yourself lucky. I don't need that stupid rabbit anymore."  
And with that, he was gone.

Another week passed, and it was the day of Poker's twelfth birthday. There was a knock on the door as Poker and her family were about to eat.  
"We're royal knights. The Queen has sent us. Please open up."  
Poker's mother stood and made her way wearily to the door. She opened the door with hesitant fingers.  
"Yes, can I help you?"  
"The Queen has requested the presence of your daughter. Please don't ask any Questions. You are welcome to accompany us, however."

Poker's mother didn't refuse the order of the Queen. Within thirty minutes, Poker and her mother stood before the Queen. Her red hair flowed over her right shoulder. She was dressed in an elegant crimson gown.  
"Poker,"  
The Queen started.  
"I saw in the woods last week."

Poker said nothing, but kept her eyes locked with the Queen's.  
"I admired your bravery to stand up to that boy. And for that,"

The Queen stood and walked forward to Poker.  
She leveled herself with Poker.  
"I have decided to reward your bravery with a personal request."  
Poker let out a long sigh, realizing she had been holding her breath.  
"Anything you ask, Your Majesty!"  
"Poker, I'd like you to become one of my trusted warriors, my personal knight. Please, Poker, will you accept the gift of the Pretty Cure Warriors?"  
Poker's mouth opened in awe. It took her a moment to find her voice.  
"Yes! Of course, Your Majesty!"

Chula appeared from behind the Queen. The Queen extended a small white diamond and clipped it into Poker's hair. The clip's magic worked instantly, and in a flash of light she stood as a Pretty Cure Warrior.  
"Welcome, Cure Card!"  
"Um, Your Majesty? If I may, can I keep my name? Can I be Cure Poker instead?"  
The Queen smiled at Poker.  
"Why of course."

* * *

"Whooooooooaaa."  
Kichi said, a small cookie falling from her fingers onto her plate with a faint "_plink_."

"So that's how you became a Pretty Cure, Yui-san."  
Audrey said.  
"You were twelve when you became a Pretty Cure?"  
Madoka asked.  
Yui blushed. She wasn't accustomed to talking about herself that much. The girls gushed over her being a Cure for two years now. Kichi was calling her Senpai while Audrey and Madoka were asking her questions.

"But,"  
Yui interrupted, her expression turning somber.  
"Those two years were fairly inactive. I became a guard of the Queen, but I didn't do much."  
The other three girls became quiet. There was more story to be told.  
"The one time I had a chance to protect the Queen. The one time I _needed_ to protect the Queen, I couldn't. The Gambling King and his minions issued a warning that they would be attacking us. But it took him two years to act on that. A few months ago is when he finally attacked the Land of Cards. The Queen apparently made her way to the front line of battle. I had no idea where she was. I was looking for her when I got attacked by Rounder."

Yui pushed through the last few words, before hiccuping, her words becoming choked.  
"And before he could do anything else, I brought Poker to the Human World~de chu."  
Chula finished.  
"And then the Gambling King completely took over the Land of Cards~lingu!"  
Darling said.  
"The Queen actually surrendered the Land, remember Darling~rayray?"  
Razor said.  
"The Queen surrendered and then she went into hiding~roro."  
"She lead as many people as she could save, but there were a lot that were changed into Avari's and had their souls reaped~rayray."  
"Then she sent us to the Human World to find new Pretty Cure Warriors~lingu."

There was a quiet moment. Yui had her head down. A few tears fell from Yui's face.  
"I failed my Queen."  
She said, her voice choked, bringing a fist to her forehead. The three other girls looked at one another, exchanging glances. The fairies were silent, Chula patting Yui's dark hair as she rested on Yui's head.  
"It's not your fault, Yui."  
Kichi said.  
"You were attacked by someone. You had to make sure you were fit to fight her before you could go and protect the Queen."  
Audrey added.  
"Hey, look at it this way."  
Madoka said. Yui looked up, wiping the tears from her eyes.  
"You're not alone anymore. You've got three more than able partners to help you now. You don't have to do anything alone anymore."

Madoka smiled. Yui's face went slack. She hadn't thought about that before. She had only regained her memories of her past just a few days ago. But she didn't stop to think about the fact that she wasn't alone anymore.  
"You're right. I-I'm not alone anymore."  
Yui said, sniffling and taking a bite of a cookie.  
"And I wanted to apologize for my behavior before that. I think I was just frustrated with myself that I wasn't allowing myself to have partners. I wanted to act alone. But,"  
She paused.  
"I can't imagine doing this without the three of you anymore."  
"Then let's stop all the crying! Let's celebrate in the fact that we're all awesome! We can do this! Let's get back the Land of Cards for the Queen!"  
Kichi exclaimed, standing up and thrusting her fist in the air.

* * *

The Card Shark Quartet stood outside the strange shop, waiting. Sharp and Swindla looked bored, Cas couldn't stand still, but Rounder had made it clear that they were not to make any moves until the girls came out of the shop.  
"Are you sure the Pretty Cure are even inside?"  
Swindla said, examining her fingernails.  
"I wish I brought a file."  
She said under her breath.

"You can worry about those later, Swindla. And yes, the Pretty Cure Warriors are in there. I can sense Cure Poker's energy. Ever sense she broke my seal, her being from the Land of Cards makes it easy to track her down."  
Rounder said. It was the only downside to his seal. Though he never expected Cure Poker to be transported to the Human World. He used that magic to stall her so he could kill her.  
'_That stupid rat.'  
_He thought, memories of the small white mouse flying in front of his face and stalling him long enough to escape with Cure Poker.

The door finally opened and the four girls walked out from the shop. They didn't notice the Quartet at first. The blonde was the first to notice.  
"What are you creeps doing here?!"  
Kichi cried.

"Creeps?! Who you callin' creeps?!"  
Cas shouted.  
Swindla rolled her eyes at Cas while Sharp immediately prepared himself for battle.  
"Don't worry about their words, Simple Cas."  
Rounder said, his voice cloyingly sweet to calm the large man.  
"Think of them as punching bags."  
He heard Cas crack his knuckles.  
"Sure thing. That pretty blue one is mine."  
Cas said, his burnt orange eyes burning holes into Audrey.

"Swindla-"  
"The green one is mine. We know whom we're fighting, and we know you have a score to settle with Poker. Don't lecture us, Rounder."  
Swindla said. She eyed Madoka with disgust.  
"Women should _not _dress so boyish."

"Girls! Let's Transform!"  
Kichi said, Darling poofing into her cellphone form.

"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"

"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"  
"The Elegant Finishing Move! Cure Royal!"  
"The Defeating Ending Move! Cure Straight!"  
"The Risky Beginning Move!" Cure Poker!"  
"Playing For Everyone's Hearts! Pretty Cure Shuffle!"

The four girls struck a pose after their roll call. The quartet did not waste any time after the girls had transformed. Cas charged for Royal, Sharp dashed for Trump, Swindla leapt after Straight and Rounder and Poker were the only ones that didn't move right away.  
"We've been ordered to take out the four of you today. Prepare to meet your end, Pretty Cure!"  
Rounder shouted.

* * *

Fighting was going on all around the park. Luckily for Pretty Cure, there were no passers by that could get harmed. Sharp and Trump exchanged punches in extremely close combat. The two were even. Sharp would jab and Trump would dodge. Trump would swing her fist forward while Sharp would block it with his arm.  
"Just give up, Cure Trump! This is a fight that you can't win!"  
Trump didn't say anything right away. She knew he wasn't talking about them just fighting hand to hand. He was talking about the goal he and the rest of the Quartet had. She couldn't let that happen.

"We have to protect Earth in order to save the Land of Cards! We won't let you get away with destroying places of peace!"  
Trump shouted.  
Sharp jabbed once more, but Trump ducked, she placed her open palms on his stomach, and pink energy glowed from her hands. In an instant, Sharp was blown backwards from Trump's burst of energy.

* * *

Cas was chasing around Royal as he punched the ground behind her. Royal elegantly jumped every time his fist met the hard earth.  
"We'll be the strongest out dere! Everyone will tremble when dey see us!"  
Cas shouted, punching downwards once more.  
Royal jumped and grabbed the large man's muscular wrist. With all her might she flung Cas over her shoulder.

"Power isn't everything! Fear is not an effective tool to get what you want!"  
Royal began kicking at Cas.  
"Pretty Cure Kick!"  
Royal shouted, kicking hard at Cas's side. He slid to the side, but Royal's kick only made him angrier.

* * *

"Women need to look beautiful! They need to look presentable to get the respect they deserve! And if they look like a man, no one will respect women!"  
Swindla shouted, firing black pink orbs of energy at Straight.  
Straight managed to punch and kick some of the orbs back Swindla's way, but some of them hit her, causing her to stumble and fall.

"Screw thinking that way!"  
Straight yelled. She charged for Swindla, and began to punch at Swindla rather swiftly.  
"I want to wear clothes that are comfortable. The only way I need to get respect is how I act and present myself, not by the way I look."  
Straight made for a roundhouse kick, and sent Swindla flying backwards. If looks could kill, Straight would have been dead instantly. Swindla's eyes seethed.  
"Ha! Clothes hold more power than your stupid comfort and actions. They're a symbol of status! They're a symbol of wealth! If you don't look beautiful, you're nothing!"

Swindla's words were venom, but Straight wasn't listening. The two charged for one another.

* * *

"Give it up, Cure Poker! The Gambling King will win! He always does!"  
Rounder shot electricity at Poker as he spoke.  
Poker dodged the attacks as much as she could. Her moves soon became sluggish. She was having a hard time keeping up with the speed of which Rounder fought her. But her arms were still blocking his punches. She wouldn't give up that easily.  
"But this time he won't! I made a promise to my Queen that I will protect her and everything that she cares for! _Begin the risky game! Poker Barrage!_"  
Poker shouted, firing her finisher at Rounder.  
Rounder, however, deflected the white orbs with ease.

"You Pretty Cure don't have what it takes to defeat us! You're all struggling to keep up with our power! You won't win. You can't win."  
Poker was breathing heavily. They were significantly overpowered. Poker looked at the girls around her. They were fighting with all their might. But before she could focus on her own fight again, Rounder fell forward as Cure Trump punched him in the back.

"We can win!"  
Trump said, leaping over his figure. She stood strong in front of Poker.  
Poker looked up at Trump, who had extended her hand to help steady Poker. Poker looked at Sharp. The boy had collapsed and wasn't moving. She looked at Trump with admiration.  
Trump turned to Rounder.  
"With hope, there's no way we can lose. Especially not to someone like you."

Trump's gold eyes burned with fire as Rounder stood upright. Royal and Straight landed next to Poker and Trump. Both Swindla and Cas were both on the ground, unconscious.  
"Cut the crap! Hope? That's what you're fighting with? Pathetic."  
His voice was rough and hoarse from yelling.  
Rounder shot more lightning at the four girls, his eyes hard with anger. Poker acted quickly. She moved in front of the other three girls and thrust her hands forward, deflecting the lightning.  
"Hope is the strongest thing we can fight with. As long as we have it, we can protect Earth and save the Land of Cards!"

Rounder's lightning stopped and the four fairies all floated in front of their Cures, the track pads on their phones glowing. The four girls traced the gold plus sign on the screen.  
"_I'll show you my trump card! Trump Shot!_"  
"_Witness my sparkling strategy! Royal Breeze!_"  
"_Experience my shuddering hand! Straight Blaze!_"  
"_Begin the risky game! Poker Barrage!_"

The four attacks all flew towards Rounder, but the leader of the Quartet had enough energy to disappear. The four attacks vanished in a flash of multicolored light. Rounder had gathered his group members at his feet.  
"This isn't over, Pretty Cure!"  
He shouted, his words heavy as he tried to catch his breath.  
In a flash of black-blue light, the four villains disappeared.

* * *

Wind swept through the hill, spreading more flower petals around. The sun was minutes away from setting and the four girls were sitting under the cherry blossom tree, shoulder to shoulder. There were people in the park again. Children playing with parents; joggers jogging casually on the sidewalks; Frisbees being thrown into the mouths of dogs.

"Um…"  
Yui's voice was soft.  
"I just really do want to thank each of you."  
She said, leaning her head back on the tree, as she had done so many times before. She closed her eyes, a small smile spreading on her face. She felt truly happy in that moment.

"I didn't have a lot of faith in myself. I was scared to be a Pretty Cure Warrior, even if it was my biggest dream."  
Yui's heartbeat had quickened. It felt like she was confessing a secret she didn't want known.  
"But I'm glad I met you all."  
Kichi, sitting on Yui's right, placed her hand on Yui's. She too was smiling, and Audrey and Madoka, sitting on the outside of their huddle, looked inwards to Kichi and Yui.  
"Like we said earlier, Yui. You're not alone anymore."

Heads nodded, and small laughs erupted from the girls. Yui opened her eyes once more, taking in the activity going on in the park below her. The sun had set, though its rays could still be seen, just beyond the horizon. Her mouth opened, though she didn't say anything right away.  
"It's good to be a part of a team. Especially with a great leader!"  
Kichi, Audrey and Madoka all looked at Yui, eye brows raised and questions formed on their lips.  
"Who's the leader?"  
Kichi asked for the three of them.  
"Why, you are, Kichi! I don't think I could lead the four of us, honestly. But there's something about the way you took command just now. It makes me want to be a better Warrior. All those in favor of Kichi being the leader?!"  
Yui said, joy in her words.  
"AYE!"  
Yui, Madoka and Audrey thrust their fists into the air, as Kichi looked around, a blank expression on her face.

Kichi pushed herself up, spinning to face her friends.  
"Well then! I guess I better lead you all the best way I can!"

* * *

Preview:

Kichi: Aaah! Guys, the Choir Club is putting on an awesome performance today!  
Audrey: I love listening to our Choir Club!  
Kichi: It makes me wish I could sing!  
Yui: So sing, Kichi!  
Madoka: You wouldn't want that.  
Audrey: They're singing about Pretty Cure!  
Kichi: Oh yeah?! How exciting! What are they singing? … "I hate Pretty Cure?!"

_Next time on Pretty Cure Shuffle!: "Singing to The Choir… 'I Hate Pretty Cure'?!"_


	8. Singing to the Choir!

"Hey, have you heard about those Pretty Cure Girls?"  
"Yeah! They're like, saving the town from those crazy monsters, right?"  
"Wow, Kounchi's own superheroes. Who would have thought?!"  
Kichi was silently listening to the conversation about Pretty Cure. It was taking a large amount of energy for her to not get involved  
"What's so cool about them anyway? They aren't all that great…"  
A new voice said.

Kichi looked in the direction the voice came. The voice belonged to Niijima Nori, a member of the Choir Club. She had short, dark brown hair pulled into a ponytail that made her hair seem a little spiky. Her burnt orange eyes gave the impression that she had heard much about Pretty Cure, but didn't care about them at all.  
"What are you talking about, Niijima-san?"  
"Yeah! The Pretty Cures are awesome!"

"Alright, alright. Settle down class. I know this is just homeroom, but there are a few things that need to be announced."  
Kawata-sensei said. He was one of the younger teachers at the school, but he managed to have good control over his class. His soft, brown eyes relaxed as they landed on Nori.  
"Niijima-san."  
Kawata-sensei said. The girl stood and made her way up to the front of the class.  
"Good morning, class."  
Niijima said, bowing deeply to the class.

When she stood back upright, she seemed almost nervous. Her expression seemed uncertain and her shoulder shook a little. The entire classroom had their eyes on her; the only empty desk was the one she just got up from.  
"PleasecometotheChoirConcertonSunday."  
Niijima said. The words had just flown out of her mouth. Kichi's hand shot straight up.  
"Could you say that again, Nori-san?"  
The class murmured in agreement. Nori took a deep breath.  
"Please come to the Choir Concert on Sunday."

Nori bowed once more and made her way back to her desk. She sat down and her shoulders slumped. Even though it wasn't that serious, it was obvious she was upset with herself for messing up. She took another deep breath and looked up to Kawata-sensei to listen to the other announcements before class started.

* * *

Episode 8: _Singing to the Choir… "I Hate Pretty Cure?!"_

* * *

The lunch bell had rung and tables were pushed together as students ate lunch. Kichi, Audrey, Madoka and Yui made their way outsite, so that their fairy partners could fly around and play. They sat down at a stone picnic table just in front of the tennis courts. There was a green net in the fence that separated the courts from the picnic table, allowing the girls some privacy. Short, sharp shouts could be heard coming from the tennis courts to show that people were practicing.  
"So should we all go to the Choir Concert on Sunday?"  
Kichi asked, poking around her bento.  
"I've always loved our Choir Club. We so many good singers at school it makes me jealous."  
She continued, taking a bit out of a piece of chicken.  
"Why are you jealous~lingu?"  
Darling asked.  
"Because Kichi can't sing."  
Madoka said flatly.

"I can too! I'm just a little tone deaf…"  
Kichi said defensively, crossing her arms and turning her head away from Madoka.  
"I can teach you how to sing~lingu!"  
"What? You can teach me, Darling?"  
"Of course~lingu!"  
Darling took in a deep breath, but before she could sing, a voice calling for the group of girls caused her to freeze.  
"Kichi-san!"

Kichi turned to see Nori running up to their table.  
"Ah! Nori-san! What brings you out here?"  
Nori stepped into the picnic area, the shadow of the awning covering her face as she did.  
"Well, I was out here to see my sister. She's practicing in the tennis courts right now. I always like to watch her when I get a chance."  
"Oh, that's right. Your sister is Niijima-senpai, right? The tennis club captain?"  
Audrey asked, no longer interested in the piece of broccoli she was poking at.

"That's right! When we transferred here two years ago, Onee-chan decided she wanted to suddenly do tennis. Turns out she had a real talent for it. She became captain at the beginning of the school year."  
"It must be nice to be that talented at something."  
Kichi said, putting her chin in her hands.  
"Kichi, you're being overdramatic. You wouldn't have gotten the part of Ophelia in _Hamlet_ if you weren't talented."  
Audrey said.  
Kichi smiled.  
"I know. I just wanted to hear someone call me talented."  
"Kichi…"

"Um…"  
Yui had finally spoken after being quiet the whole conversation. She looked confused; brows furrowed and a slight frown could be seen.  
"What's tennis?"

* * *

The girls walked into the tennis court. Only two girls were seen playing. One girl had black pigtails; the other had sandy brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. Both girls were breathing hard, sweat making their hair cling to the side of their face. They wore the high school's tennis practice outfits. The middle school and the high school had to share the courts. The tennis clubs weren't big enough at both schools to garner courts at each school.

The two girls were seen hitting the yellow ball back and forth. Yui took it all in. So this was tennis. It seemed simple enough to Yui, but the way the two girls were playing –with such intensity and focus– made Yui think again about how simple the game truly might be.  
The girl with the sandy brown hair noticed the five girls standing at the entrance of the court.  
"Akane! Let's take a break. My sister's here."  
She said to her partner. Nori's older sister made her way over to the five girls, while her partner went to another side of the court.  
"Nori-chan! Here to watch me practice again? Who are these girls? New friends?"  
"I wouldn't say new friends… They're in my class though! Girls,"  
Nori said, gesturing to Kichi and the others.  
"This is my older sister, Iyari."

The four girls bowed to Iyari.  
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Niijima-senpai."  
Audrey said.  
Iyari bowed back, though not as deep.  
"Same here."  
Iyari grabbed a bottle of water not far from where the group was standing and downed it within seconds.  
"So,"  
She said, wiping her mouth.  
"You four coming to Nori's concert on Sunday?"

"Onee-chan…"  
Nori said sheepishly, looking away from her older sister.  
"What? I can't help get people hear you sing?"  
Nori didn't answer, but she seemed to ease herself.  
"We will definitely be there!"  
Audrey said, hoping to stop any sibling bickering before it started.  
"The middle school's choir club is so wonderful. I wish I could sing as well as they can."  
Kichi said.  
"I do too. Mom and dad can both sing really well, but I wasn't blessed with a knack for singing, unfortunately."  
Iyari said.

"Oh, by the way, Nori. Have you been practicing?"  
Iyari asked, turning her attention to her sister.  
"Of-of course! Why wouldn't I be?"  
"Hey, calm down. I was just double-checking. You think you'll be ready by Sunday? I heard you having some trouble with part of the music last night. Is it the solo? Are you worried about messing it up? Because if you are, I don't think-"  
"Don't worry about it!"  
Nori snapped.  
"I've been practicing. In fact,"  
Nori said, turning on her heel.  
"I'm going to practice right now."

"Yay! Go for broke, little sis!"  
"You're always saying that. I hate it when you say that…"  
Nori mumbled as she exited the court.

* * *

"Dammit!"  
Rounder roared as he flipped over his card table. Sharp and Cas backed away from their angry leader. Swindla looked in Rounder's direction lazily, stirring some sort of cocktail. The casino they occupied was still dark, except for the three spot lights that shown over the bar, the roulette table and Rounder's card table. Rounder left the light of his card table, searching for more things to destroy.

Grunts and crashing were the only things heard for the next few moments. Sharp leaned back on the roulette table, his face looking tired. But he was just as angry as Rounder. The Pretty Cure should not have been that tough when they fought them. Three of them were brand new, and one of them might as well have been inactive for two years. How were they so strong?

Sharp grabbed the roulette ball and examined it between his index finger and thumb. It was black with intricate red designs carved into it. Bored with it after just a few seconds, Sharp flicked the small ball away as another crash was heard.  
"Rounder's really that angry, huh?"  
He said, his tone casual.  
Swindla and Cas didn't respond with nothing more than shrugs and nods.

It had been a handful of days since they had to retreat. And the King hadn't assigned them to fight. The four were getting bored, and as the time from crash to crash increased, it sounded like Rounder was running out of things to ruin.

The casino was silent for once more. Sharp waited for another crash to be heard, but Rounder stepped back into the spotlight of his card table. He set it back up delicately, as if he hadn't just come from destroying other unseen things.

A door was heard being opened, and then shut in the distance. After a few seconds of listening for footsteps, Sharp noticed an Avari card float down from the ceiling. He smirked. No one else seemed to care or notice the card. He grabbed it before it hit the ground.  
"I'll see you three later."  
In a puff of dark green smoke, Sharp was gone.

* * *

The girls had a small conversation with Iyari after Nori left. Iyari talked about some worries she had about the tennis club's budget from the school, to singing, to classes, what high schools the girls are thinking about attending. The bell rang for the girls to go back to class, and the day went by fairly uneventful.

That evening, Kichi sat at her homework table in the middle of her room. Her family's house wasn't big, just a simple one-story house in the suburbs just outside of the city. Kichi heard her older sister listening to music in the room next to hers as she spun her pencil around, absentmindedly staring at her homework. Darling was floating around the room, looking at different posters in Kichi had posted.  
"Uuugh."  
Kichi sighed, leaning back on to her bed.

"What's the matter, Kichi~lingu?"  
"I just don't feel like doing homework."  
Kichi took off her glasses and stared around her room. She liked to take them off and look at the world with her naturally bad sight. The blurs around her room were familiar, but she couldn't quite make them out in their entirety, even if she knew what they were.  
"I know! I never got a chance to give you a singing lesson today~lingu!"  
"Yes! Something to take my mind off of the homework!"  
Kichi said, standing up, thrusting her fist in the air, as she liked to do.

"Repeat after me~lingu. Laaa."  
"Laaa."  
"Laaaaaa la laaa!"  
"Laaaaaa LA LAAA!"  
"Kichi, you don't have to be that loud~lingu."  
Darling said, covering her ears.  
"Oh, sorry. Let's start over!"

The two sang for about half an hour before Kichi's father came into her room to tell her to finish her homework.  
"Do you like to sing, Darling?"  
Kichi asked, writing out an answer on one of her homework papers.  
"Singing is my favorite thing to do~lingu! It such a fun thing do do~lingu! I think it brings joy and smiles to a lot of people~lingu!"  
Darling said, joy filling her voice.  
"That's good."  
Kichi said softly.  
"I think everyone needs to have little hobbies that they enjoy. I hope Nori does well at the concert on Sunday. And I hope Iyari-senpai can continue to play tennis. And I hope Audrey continues to write, and Madoka continues to play basketball, and Yui continues to play chess!"

"And I hope you continue to act~lingu!"  
Darling said, landing on Kichi's head.  
"Aaaaah! I totally forgot! I need to be memorizing lines tooo! But I have so much homework to do…"

* * *

Sunday finally rolled around. The Choir Club concert was at 6:30PM. At 6:00, Audrey stood outside Kichi's house and rang the doorbell.  
"Coming!"  
Came Kichi's response from inside.  
A few minutes later, the door opened, and Kichi walked outside. She was wearing a simple pink skirt, a red top and a white cardigan.  
"Madoka and Yui said they would meet us at the school before the concert started."  
Audrey said.

The two girls walked down the street to the school as they did almost every morning. Kichi and Audrey had been living next to one another since they were diapers. They did almost everything together. From their houses, it was only a ten-minute walk to the school.  
"Audrey! Audrey! Listen! Darling has been teaching me how to sing!"  
"She's learned very well~lingu!"  
Darling floated up to Audrey's ear and whispered.  
"She's still a little tone deaf, but she's better than she was before~lingu."  
Audrey gave a small laugh.  
"Let's hear it then, Kichi!"

* * *

"Ugh. This town, I swear is so boring."  
Sharp said, lazily flying above Kounchi.  
"Am I even allowed to look for souls somewhere else?"  
He said absentmindedly.  
He found himself flying towards school.  
"I guess this is as good as any place to st-whoa."

Sharp had found one of the strongest readings of greed since he had arrived in the city.  
"That's a crazy amount of greed… I wonder what for."  
The greed was oozing from a girl with sandy brown hair amongst a crowd of people heading into the school. She was wearing a purple dress and was talking to another girl with darker brown hair in a black dress.  
"Gotcha."

* * *

Nori took a deep breath in and let it out. The concert was minutes away from starting, and even though her solo was towards the end of the concert, her hands shook with nerves. A hand was placed on her shoulder; Nori turned.  
"Don't worry little sis."  
Iyari said, smiling at her younger sister.  
"I heard you this morning. You were really singing beautifully. I know you can do it once more."  
Nori gave a small smile. Her sister's words were encouraging, for sure. But that still didn't help much with the nerves.

"Hey,"  
Iyari said, picking up on what her sister was thinking.  
"If nothing else, do it because it's fun, okay?"  
Nori's hands stopped shaking. She looked into her sister's maroon eyes. Her smile widened as she hugged Iyari tightly.  
"Thank you, Onee-chan!"  
Nori said.  
Iyari broke their embrace and gave a thumb's up.  
"Go for broke!"  
Iyari said, winking.

* * *

"La laaaaaaaaaa."  
Kichi stopped singing as Yui and Madoka gave a small applause.  
"Well who knew that in just 2 days Darling actually managed to tame that voice of yours."  
Madoka said.  
"I think you can still improve, but you're not horrible."  
Yui said.  
"Yui… So cold."  
Kichi said, feigning a tearful response.  
"What…? I was just being honest."  
Yui muttered to herself.  
The lights went down and the curtain went up.

* * *

The program was going quite well, and even Sharp found himself enjoying the performance. But he was here on a mission. The curtains went down and a fair amount of people got out of their seats. Apparently something called an intermission was happening. He knew it was his time to act. He kept his eyes on the girl with sandy brown hair, her greed still an alarmingly high level. The card seemed to be attracted to her.

In fact, when Sharp came close to her, the card shot out of his hand and clung to Iyari. Iyari grabbed the card only to be met with a blast of black/red energy.  
"AVARI! TAKE YOUR GREED AND FULFILL YOUR DESIRES!"  
Sharp shouted.  
The light died down and a large tennis racket monster appeared.  
"AVARIIII."  
It roared.

* * *

Kichi, Audrey, Madoka and Yui ran into the foyer of the auditorium, people screaming and running away from the giant tennis racket.  
"THE TENNIS CLUB IS SUCCESSFUL! WHY SHOULD WE HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT OUR CLUBS BEING DISCONTINUED? YOU SHOULD GIVE US MORE MONEY THAN THE OTHER CLUBS!"  
The monster's voice was deafening.  
It fired enormous tennis balls everywhere that exploded when they made contact with something. The foyer was rather empty, and the girls looked at one another and nodded.

"Pretty Cure! Card Play!"  
"The Ultimate Winning Move! Cure Trump!"  
"The Elegant Finishing Move! Cure Royal!"  
"The Defeating Ending Move! Cure Straight!"  
"The Risky Beginning Move! Cure Poker!"  
"Playing for everyone's hearts! Pretty Cure Shuffle!"

The girls all stood before Sharp, ready to fight.  
"Oh, so you decided to show up after all? You know,"  
Sharp said, pacing in front of them, the Avari stomping around and firing tennis balls everywhere.  
"You really gave us a good wallop the last time we met."

Sharp seemed to be specifically talking to Cure Trump now.  
"I can't let that happen again. AVARI! Destroy the Pretty Cure!"

"What's going on?!"

A voice cried, double doors bursting open into the foyer.  
Nori stood in the doorway, looking at the scene of destruction before her.  
"Wh-what?"

"Miss! Please, get out of here! It's not safe for you!"  
Trump said.  
Nori was about to protest before a tennis ball exploded to her right. She shielded herself from it, but she didn't run off as Trump suggested.  
"Is everyone else safe?"  
Nori shouted.  
"Everyone seems to be out of the building! We suggest that you do the same, miss!"  
Royal said.

As she did, Straight and Poker charged forward to the Avari. Royal turned to Trump, had a silent exchange, and she ran off to fight the Avari as well. Trump ran for Nori.  
"Not so fast, Cure Trump!"  
Sharp exclaimed, running in her direction.  
Trump had little time to prepare herself for Sharp's attack. Ducking, she managed to dodge some punches, but Sharp was prepared, and kicked at her side. Trump fell down a few feet from him. She got back up quickly, though she was clutching her side.

"THE TENNIS CLUB SHOULDN'T HAVE TO BE DISBANDED!"  
The Avari said, firing more tennis balls out of thin air."Is…Is that…? Onee-chan?"  
"Is…Is that…? Onee-chan?"Nori said, horrified.  
Nori said, horrified.  
Extending the arm she wasn't using to clutch her side, Trump stood in front of Nori.  
"Miss, please. We need you to run. It's not safe here."  
"Is that my sister?!"  
Nori yelled, her burnt orange eyes glistening with tears.

"I don't know, miss."  
Trump said, taking in a pained breath.  
"Please. Run."  
Sharp begun a volley of green energy orbs. They all hit Trump and she was forced backward. Nori caught Trump as she fell backwards.  
"I'm fine."  
She said, her teeth gritted.

"This is boring, Cure Trump. Put up a better fight!"  
Trump was standing upright now. She kept her gaze on Sharp.  
"How dare you come and ruin the Choir Club's big night!"  
"What?"  
"The Choir Club put a lot of time and effort into this performance, and I won't allow you to continue to ruin it!"  
Sharp rolled his eyes.  
There were shouts of pain behind him. Royal, Straight and Poker had all been thrown into a wall by the Avari.

"Who cares? Music isn't necessary. It's nice to listen to, sure. But it's not something to make a night out of."  
Sharp said, giving a smug chuckle.  
"You're wrong!"  
Trump shouted.  
"Music deserves to be appreciated!"  
Royal said, charging for Sharp.  
Sharp deflected Royal's advances, but wasn't prepared for Straight's kick to his back.

"If you put effort and hard work into anything, it deserves to be recognized!"  
She said, her neon green eyes hard and burning.  
Poker snuck up on Sharp and elbowed him in the side.  
"That's right! And to laugh and say that it's not necessary is unforgivable!"

Sharp staggered away from the Warriors.  
"Music is something that brings smiles to peoples faces! That's what Darling told me, and I believe her!  
Trump said.

Taking advantage of the distracted Cures, the Avari fired more tennis balls at the four girls.  
"I WILL BE GIVEN WHAT IS OWED TO ME!"  
The Avari shouted.  
The four girls looked at the tennis racket monster. It's last statement seemed to be about something different than the tennis club.  
"Avari! Finish them off!"  
Sharp said, disappearing in a wisp of murky green smoke.

Trump snatched Darling from her waist, and looked at the small pink face on the lower half of the phone.  
"I'll protect music for anyone who loves it. Let's finish this, okay?"  
"Okay~lingu!"  
Darling's track pad lit up as Trump drew a golden cross on it.  
"_I'll show you my trump card! Trump Shot!_"  
The pink bullet flew from Trump's extended index fingers and hit the Avari in the red A that sat atop the tennis racket's boarder. In an explosion of pink smoke, Iyari appeared and softly landed on the ground. The Avari card fluttered down to the ground and burned to ashes when it touched the carpet.

All the damage that was done by the Avari disappeared, and everything went back to normal. The girls all high fived.  
"Just a second!"  
Nori said.  
She was kneeling at the Iyari's side, clutching her sister so hard her knuckles were white.  
"How could you let this happen?!"  
She demanded.

The four Cures looked at one another, confused.  
"What do you mean?"  
Trump asked.  
"You let my sister get turned into a monster!"  
The girls were quiet.  
"We didn't mean for that to happen, miss. That's what we're trying to prevent."  
Royal said.  
"You should be grateful that she didn't suffer a worse fate!"  
Straight said, her words sounding annoyed.  
"Jeez. No appreciates anything around here anymore."  
Straight said under her breath.

"Miss, we're here to protect the earth from those people that turned your sister into a monster."  
Poker said.  
"Well you shouldn't let people get turned into these things in the first place!"  
Nori wiped her eyes, her burnt orange eyes full of anger and frustration.  
"My sister shouldn't have had to have that happen to her!"  
Nori paused.  
The four Cures were speechless.

"I hate you!"

"What?"  
Poker gasped.

"I hate Pretty Cure!"

* * *

After all the guests were allowed back in the building, the concert went by flawlessly. Nori pulled her solo off beautifully. Iyari cheered and applauded the loudest. She didn't show any signs of being turned into an Avari.

When the concert was over, the four girls left rather quickly.  
"Are we really not doing our job correctly?"  
Kichi said, her voice somber.  
The other three didn't say anything right away.  
"Of course we are."  
Yui said.  
"We have no control over who the Card Shark Quartet are going to target. Yes, it is our duty to protect this Earth. And I honestly do feel like a part of me has somewhat failed after seeing someone be turned into an Avari. But…"  
Yui paused.  
"As long as we return that Avari to whom they once were, then I'm happy. Because while we may not have been able to prevent them from turning into a monster, we were able to prevent them from becoming a slave to the Gambling King."

"Kichi,"  
Audrey said, lacing her fingers through Kichi's hand.  
The street was rather empty, and the streetlights had turned on, lighting their way back to Kichi's house.  
"Don't let Nori-san's words get you down. She was just upset. She cares for her sister dearly. I can't blame her for being mad at us, honestly."  
Audrey squeezed Kichi's hand, hoping to tell her that things were going to be okay.  
Madoka threw her arm around Kichi's shoulder.  
"Besides, people that hate us is only a sign of us doing something right!"

* * *

"I hate you! I hate Pretty Cure!"  
The King opened his eyes.  
"Oh?"  
He said.  
The words echoed in his throne room once more.  
"This should be interesting."  
He said, his tone amused.

He snapped his fingers, as the words were being sounded in the room once again. The words turned into a bright orange light. The Gambling King gathered the light in his hands. His hands glowed with black energy, closing them around the orange light.  
When he let them go, a dark orange, pentagonal shaped gem rested in the palm of his hand.  
"This should be very interesting."  
He said, before his laugh began to echo in his throne room.

* * *

Preview

Kichi: Uuuugghhh. I can't believe someone hates us. I just want to eat my feelings.  
Madoka: No! Don't do that!  
Audrey: Ice cream doesn't sound too bad right now.  
Madoka: Audrey, don't encourage her!  
Yui: I could go for a crepe with chocolate sauce and whipped cream right now.  
Madoka: No, no, no!

_Next time on Pretty Cure Shuffle!: Get Healthy! Madoka's Train-All-Day Session!_


End file.
